In Maine, feds reinstate program that registers newborns for Social Security numbers at hospitals

The Social Security Administration has reinstated Maine parents' ability to register their newborns for a Social Security number at the hospital just days after telling state officials that the program was canceled.

No reason has been given for either change. However, the move follows a pattern of chaotic and unexplained changes to government programs and contracts as billionaire Elon Musk and his team cull workers and programs from the federal bureaucracy.

The Enumeration at Birth process has been in place for all states since 1989 and is used by 99% of parents, according to the Social Security Administration. Other states' canceled contracts appear on Musk's so-called Wall of Receipts, a website meant to show savings accrued by his team as it cancels contracts and programs.

This week Maine officials at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention began notifying providers that the federal government had suspended the in-hospital application process and parents will now have to apply in-person at a Social Security office. The notice said EAB is voluntary but "almost all parents" utilized the program to obtain a Social Security number for their child. Officials said parents will need to visit their local Social Security Office to apply for their child’s Social Security number.

But on Friday, Alisa Morton, a spokesperson for Department of Health and Human Services, the umbrella agency for the Maine CDC, said the program had been reinstated. Morton said the Social Security Administration terminated two contracts, one for Enumeration at Birth and another allowing for electronic submission of death registration and cited a clause allowing for the termination of contracts at the government's convenience.

"The SSA has just notified Maine DHHS that it is rescinding the terminations of the Maine contracts for Enumeration at Birth (EAB) and Electronic Death Records (EDR) effective immediately," Morton said.

While no reason was given for either change, the cancellation of enumeration at birth contracts for at least five other states appear on a website touting savings by Musk's team. They include Arizona, Maryland, Michigan, New Mexico and Rhode Island. Maine's contract does not appear on the website.

Musk has been tapped by President Donald Trump to cull the federal bureaucracy of waste and fraud, but his efforts have created a firestorm of controversy as he's vastly overstated savings and misrepresented the nature of the programs his team is eliminating.

The effort has also drawn lawsuits challenging Musk's ability to unilaterally direct changes and cuts to the federal bureaucracy. The billionaire's actual role has also vexed judges adjudicating those lawsuits because the Trump Administration has sent mixed messages about who is authorizing the cuts and contract cancellations.

On Thursday, Trump told his cabinet secretaries that they had final say on Musk's recommendations for cuts.

"If they can cut, it's better. And if they don't cut then Elon will do the cutting," the president said, according to NPR.

This story is a production of the New England News Collaborative. It was originally published by Maine Public.