Frank Bisignano, the Social Security Administration (SSA) commissioner under the Trump administration, has responded robustly to Senator Elizabeth Warren’s criticisms of the agency’s customer service practices. In a letter exclusively reviewed by FOX Business, Bisignano addressed Warren’s concerns, defending the changes made by the SSA and arguing that the agency is experiencing a “customer service turnaround” after facing long wait times and backlogs under the Biden administration.
Bisignano’s letter pointed out that while Warren has been vocal about the customer service issues at SSA, she had not previously raised similar concerns during the Trump administration, despite the agency’s deteriorating service. He cited record-long wait times that peaked at 42 minutes in November 2023 under the previous administration, along with concerns from SSA staff about employment satisfaction, which he said Warren had not addressed in her communications with SSA leadership at the time.
The SSA commissioner emphasized the improvements under the current administration, attributing the changes to “strong leadership, world-class management, and a new approach leveraging technology.” Bisignano also questioned Warren’s criticism of the SSA’s data methodology, noting that the performance data, which is regularly reported to Congress, has been prepared by the agency’s dedicated workforce across different administrations.
He provided updated data to support his argument, highlighting improvements in the agency’s customer service performance. According to Bisignano, the average wait time for calls to SSA’s national 800 number has decreased significantly from 27.6 minutes in fiscal year 2024 to 4.6 minutes in late July 2025. Wait times at SSA field offices also showed a decline, with the average time dropping from 28.3 to 20.9 minutes between fiscal years 2024 and 2025.
In addition to improvements in wait times, Bisignano pointed out that the backlog of initial disability claims had been reduced by 26%, from over 1.2 million cases in June 2024 to around 936,000 in 2025. He emphasized that these statistics demonstrated the success of the SSA’s management and the progress made in customer service.
Bisignano rejected Warren’s accusations of mismanagement and a crisis in customer service, asserting that the improvements were clear and undeniable across all service indicators. He also extended an invitation to Warren to visit an SSA field office in Massachusetts on August 22, 2025, to witness the improvements firsthand and to discuss any concerns she might have regarding specific cases.
In his letter, Bisignano acknowledged the transformation SSA has undergone in terms of customer service, inviting Warren to engage in a constructive dialogue about the progress and the hard work of SSA staff.
