Did the fed do away with spousal SS benefits for folks born after 1954?

Hi. No. Spousal benefits can still be paid to people who people who meet the requirements for those benefits regardless of when they were born.

What changed for people born after January 1 1954 is that they are not allowed to file just for spousal benefits without also being required to claim their own Social Security retirement benefits at the same time (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/claiming.html). People born prior to January 2 1954 were permitted to claim spousal benefits at full retirement age (FRA) or later while letting their own Social Security retirement benefits to grow until age 70.

Best, Jerry