Significant changes will be coming for Social Security recipients starting on March 31st.

Millions of Americans will no longer be able to verify their identity over the phone,

creating a challenge for older Americans and those with disabilities.

Stephanie Syde joins us now with more.

This latest move by the Trump administration will require new and existing recipients

to either verify themselves online or have their IDs verified in person, even while more

than 40 field offices are slated to be shut down by the Department of Government Efficiency.

The changes are aimed at addressing the potential

for fraudulent claims and improper payments, which amounted to $72 billion between 2015 to

2022. That's less than 1% of all the benefits dispersed during that time period. Advocates are raising concerns about the burden this could place on an already vulnerable population. For more on what this means going forward, I'm joined by Kathleen Romick, Director of Social Security and Disability Policy for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Kathleen, thank you so much for joining

the News Hour. So it seems the biggest change here is getting rid of the option to verify

one's identity by phone. Who will that impact the most? It's going to impact anyone who

struggles with the online verification system that SSA has. So that could include people who are just not

comfortable using online services, which often does include older people and people with

disabilities, which are the main populations that the Social Security Administration serves.

It also means people who are not allowed to open a my Social Security account.

So, for example, children, their families will have to visit a Social Security office in person

to authenticate their identities and to do business with the agency. It also affects people who

perhaps don't have a driver's license or don't

have a smartphone in order to use those online authentication tools.

And of course, it's not just the elderly. There are 72.5 million Americans who receive

these benefits, including children. I am curious how one does verify an ID by phone. The implication from the administration

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