Food stamp recipients spend their benefits in the form of paper coupons or electronic benefits on debit cards to buy eligible food in authorized retail food stores. The State Children's Health Insurance Program SCHIP is a partnership between the Federal and State Governments that provides health coverage to uninsured children whose families earn too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to afford private coverage.
You must check with the SCHIP office in the state you live in to confirm your family's eligibility to receive benefits. Important: Names for this program vary by state. If you are not sure which office to contact, contact the main Medicaid Hotline in your state and ask for the office that deals with children's health insurance. Or visit our Healthcare and Medical Assistance page.
Looking for even more benefits you may be eligible to receive? Use our Benefit Finder tool to be matched with benefits specific to your needs.
Over 1. You can also call for assistance applying for health insurance. If you enroll in coverage through HealthSherpa, you will have access to a free HealthSherpa account. In your account, you can access information about your coverage, find out how much prescriptions cost, search for and choose a new doctor, report life changes to the Marketplace, download tax forms, plus more.
Click here to sign up. Department of Health and Human Services. The program provides free or low-cost health benefits to adults, kids, pregnant women, seniors, and people with disabilities. The Medicaid program covers 1 in 5 Americans , with a broad array of health services and limits enrollees out-of-pocket costs. Grab our guide to Medicaid here —you can save it and refer back to it later. Medicaid finances nearly a fifth of all personal healthcare spending in the U.
In , Medicaid covered over 76 million low-income Americans. About half of all U. The Affordable Care Act increased Medicaid coverage by 28 percent. It raised the income level and allowed single adults to qualify. It covers hospital care, medical supplies, and tests.
It also provides preventive care, such as eye exams, dental care, and regular check-ups. Housing Assistance helps low-income families, seniors, and people with disabilities get into affordable private or government-owned rental housing. The Housing Choice Voucher Program gives certificates to rent approved units. The subsidy allows recipients to pay no more than 30 percent of their income. It provides 1.
This is the old Section 8 program. The Public Housing Agency also allows some families to use the voucher to purchase a modest home. It helps the aged, blind, and disabled buy food, clothing, and shelter. On average, roughly 8. Of those, 7. Administered by the U. TANF may also offer non-cash benefits such as child care or job training.
In , 2. Of these, 1. Despite this help, they still live below the poverty line. Families who receive TANF must get a job within two years and can only receive this benefit for five years or less in some states.
Earned Income Tax Credit is a tax credit for families with at least one child. EITC lifted 6. Head Start is a free or reduced cost program that provides comprehensive early childhood education, health nutrition, and parent involvement services.
This program is offered to low-income children, from birth to 5 years old, and their families. In the program serviced nearly 1 million children and 1. The Department of Education runs the Federal Pell Grant Program to promote postsecondary education college and trade school for students from low-income households.
They are designed to go to undergraduate students based on factors such as the cost of attendance at the school and expected family and student contribution. Each state operates its own unemployment benefits program.
These programs pay a cash amount if you lose your job through no fault of your own. Some states also provide extended unemployment benefits when there is high unemployment, meaning you can collect on your unemployment insurance for 13 weeks. You can apply for an extension once your regular unemployment benefits run out.
Although the details for how to apply and qualify vary by state. And remember, you must report all unemployment benefits you received in a given calendar year as income when you file your taxes for that year. In addition to unemployment benefits through your state, the federal and state government work together to provide all kinds of unemployment help and job training programs. Department of Labor. These include retraining programs to apprenticeship programs to vocational skills programs to special programs for farm workers, refugees older Americans still in the workforce, and Native Americans.
You can learn about all of these different programs and what you might be able to apply for at the U. The U. Department of Labor also provides self-employment assistance , designed to enable those who are currently unemployed to start their own businesses.
In these programs, instead of collecting unemployment insurance benefits, those currently unemployed may instead receive a weekly allowance which they can use towards starting their new business. This will enable you to shop and enroll in a Marketplace Obamacare plan outside of the standard Open Enrollment Period. If you want to learn more about whether you qualify for an SEP and want advice on how to best shop for an Obamacare plan, the HealthSherpa Consumer Advocate can help.
If you need health insurance, give our Consumer Advocates a call at There are a number of government programs available to help defer the costs of utility bills. The Lifeline program run by the Federal Communications Commission FCC helps low-income individuals and families get discounted landline and cell phone service.
Subscribers can receive a Lifeline discount on either a wireline or a wireless service, and you can get one Lifeline service per household. Lifeline is available to eligible low-income consumers in every state, commonwealth, territory, and on Tribal lands.
You can check online to see what providers offer Lifeline services in your area and see if and what kind of benefits you might qualify for. Although the program does not pay for sewage or water bills, it can help subsidize your energy bills and help get those bills down through weatherization improvements to make your home more energy efficient.
So, just because you qualify for LIHEAP does not guarantee that you will receive help due to a limited number of funds available for this kind of assistance. Though there are many excellent government assistance programs out there, there are even more fraudulent scams designed to take advantage of low-income people in need of help. To determine if you are eligible for SNAP benefits , you must meet certain requirements.
States have income limits for SNAP recipients. They can also factor in your resources, such as money in the bank, to decide if you qualify for SNAP. Use the online map to apply for SNAP and to find your state and local offices and phone numbers.
You may also apply in person at your state or local office. Your state will issue benefits each month on a plastic electronic benefits transfer EBT card. Much like a credit or debit card, you can use your EBT card to buy eligible food items. You must buy them from:. Participating farmers markets. Some states have websites set up for managing your benefits. Whether you currently receive SNAP benefits or you're in the process of applying, you can file a complaint using these resources:.
Contact your local field office to request a hearing if you have questions about your benefit amount. File a complaint online or by phone about a SNAP retailer. You will need to give the name and the location of the store. You may remain anonymous if you choose. Learn how to file a complaint if you believe you have experienced discrimination in the SNAP program because of:. Here are other suggestions that should be considered resources for low-income families to regain control of their finances:.
Grants are issued via states, which receive funding from the Department of Health and Human Services. Each state sets its own eligibility requirements, including income levels. The Lifeline program offers discounted phone or internet service. You must meet certain eligibility requirements. Section Project Rental Assistance offers long-term project-based rental assistance funding from the U. NOTE: Currently funds are available on an over-the-counter basis.
Recipients of these kind of government benefits must prove their income is below a set amount, which is some percentage of the federal poverty level. Most programs also require you to be a United States citizen or an eligible non-citizen. And many programs have state requirements based on family size and details about combined family income.
Through executive order , the Trump administration has called for the introduction of work requirements to receive some of these welfare benefits. President Trump doubled down on this concept, tying them into the fiscal budget he introduced. For now, the government agencies and departments that administer these programs are developing ways to introduce work requirements into many of these programs.
And dont forget that welfare programs are not entitlement programs by definition. Entitlement programs, like Social Security and unemployment insurance, determine eligibility based on prior contributions from payroll taxes.
Welfare programs, however, are based solely on a familys income level, and thus level of need. You can also find out how and where to apply. Using the Benefit Finder , answer questions about yourself and your needs. Afterwards, you can find out if youre eligible for programs to help you pay for:. Check back with Benefits. You can report major life events or see if new benefit programs have become available. HHC provides funding on a competitive basis to deliver supportive housing opportunities to developers using the federal National Housing Trust Funds allocations for operating reserve grants and capital loans.
The Department will also utilized from a portion of moneys collected in calendar year and deposited into the Building Homes and Jobs Trust Fund to provide funding through grants to counties for capital and operating assistance.
Funds will be announced through a Notice of Funding Availability. The USDA offers a number of programs aimed at all sectors of the agricultural community. Programs include farm loans, housing assistance,loans and grants for rural economic development, loans for beginning farmers and ranchers, livestock insurance, and more.
Social Security Disability Insurance benefits are paid to people who cannot work for at least one year due to a medical condition or who are expected to die from that condition.
The Social Security Disability Planner helps you determine if you are eligible. If you believe you qualify, you can apply online. ESG makes grant funds available for projects serving homeless individuals and families through eligible non-profit organizations or local governments.
Department of Housing and Urban Development. Funding is announced annually through a Notice of Funding Availability.
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