Acting Social Security Administration Commissioner Leland Dudek now faces increasing pressure to resign after his decision to stop healthcare providers from handling newborn Social Security number registrations at hospitals.
A decision that ended the Enumeration at Birth program was quickly withdrawn after emails revealed possible political retaliation against Maine’s Democratic Governor Janet Mills.
The Social Security Administration terminated all contracts with Maine on March 5 for delivering Enumeration at Birth services through the program.
Hospitals have operated this service since decades to let parents obtain Social Security numbers for newborns through direct hospital registration.
The cessation of newborn Social Security number registration caused medical bodies along with public representatives to condemn it as purposeless and detrimental to security since it would delay the process.
Democratic Representative Chellie Pingree from Maine has joined other lawmakers in demanding a complete resignation from Dudek. Pingree accused Dudek of abusing his position to get revenge on Governor Mills because she disagreed with Trump’s transgender athlete policy which triggered federal investigations into Maine’s policies.
The actions of Dudek directly targeted Mills for her opposition to Trump administration policies following Trump’s threat to cut federal funding from Maine.
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Governor Mills expressed her disapproval of this move by praising the need for Social Security leadership that prioritizes the program as an essential public program particularly since many Mainers depend on these benefits. The Maine representatives view this action as “reckless” because it threatens the welfare of Maine citizens.
According to Dudek the mistake occurred but he admitted feeling frustrated with Mills which led to the decision though he denied any political retaliation motives. After this incident investigations have started while state and federal leaders have increased their diplomatic tensions.
The controversy emerges while the Trump administration actively implements federal directives against Maine and other states that do not comply with their policies especially regarding transgender sports rights.