Larson Statement on Withdrawal of Trump Plan to Strip Disability Benefits

Washington, D.C. - Today, House Social Security Subcommittee Ranking Member John B. Larson (CT-01) released the following statement on the Trump Administration’s withdrawal of their plan to severely cut disability benefits, which would have been one of the most sweeping and devastating cuts to Social Security disability ever made. In October, Ranking Member Larson and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25) led 165 House Democrats in an effort to halt these cuts. 

“The Trump Administration has been on a mission to privatize Social Security from within, going after the benefits Americans have earned with each and every paycheck,” said Larson. “At a time when five million of our fellow Americans already retire into poverty, these cuts would have driven even more families into poverty. It is simply cruel to tell people they are on their own when they need help the most, after a lifetime of playing by the rules. Following a month of public outcry, I am glad to see the President back off this unconscionable plan to deny people their disability benefits. But make no mistake, he will try again. Democrats will continue to fight tooth and nail to make sure these cuts never see the light of day.” 

As of 2022, almost 42 percent of disability applicants were found eligible due to their age, a factor that was set to be severely curtailed under the Trump Administration’s new plan. In 2020, the Trump Administration weighed a similar rule to restrict disability benefits in the middle of the COVID pandemic. Had it moved forward, this rule would have resulted in one of the largest cuts to Social Security disability benefits in history.