The Trump administration is proposing changes to Social Security that could reshape how millions of older Americans qualify for disability benefits, and critics warn it could leave some struggling just before retirement. Under the new rules, "age" would no longer be a central factor in assessing eligibility, effectively raising the bar for workers in their 50s and 60s who face chronic illness or long-term injury. Social Security Administration spokesman Barton Mackey said the agency is working on plans to "propose improvements to the disability adjudication process to ensure our disability program remains current and can be more efficiently administered."