Saturday, August 07, 2010
Food Benefits Program Expanded, Servicing More People
KENTUCKY...
Reprint from The Medical Leader
By MARY MEADOWS
Staff Writer
PIKEVILLE - A program that's helping food assistance for Pike County residents
affected by the July 17 flooding has expanded this week to cover more people.
The Disaster Supplement Nutrition Program (SNAP), operated through the Cabinet for
Health and Family Services, is providing additional resources for the purchase of
food for people who previously had food stamp benefits and people who previously
didn't qualify for food stamp benefits.
The program was initially opened to people living or working in areas with zip codes
41501, 41502, 41522, 41539 and 41557. It has now been expanded to also help people
living or working in areas with zip codes 41557, 41559, 41562, 41513 and 41540.
People living in these 10 areas are eligible to receive maximum food stamp benefits
for their households if they suffered losses in the flood. Qualifying individuals
include people who experienced property damage or loss, people who had losses
because their employer was flooded and people who lost food because their
electricity was out. It also provides the replacement of food stamps for flood
victims who lost their EBT cards and/or food during the flood.
The assistance will be provided during the Flood Relief for Kids event at the Eastern Kentucky Expo Center between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Aug. 7. Flood victims may
also apply at the Department for Community Based Services office, located on 295
Hambley Blvd. from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Aug. 7; and from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Aug.
9-11.
Jennifer Adkins, Service Region Administrator Associate for the agency, said that,
as of Friday morning, officials issued $76,000 in food stamps to qualifying
residents.
The federally-funded program was made available after Adkins and her supervisor
Susan Howard realized the need when they toured flooded areas of Pike County and
spoke to residents staying at Red Cross' emergency homeless shelter.
"The flood affected what we call the working poor and the workers who fall between
the cracks, the people who were never on the welfare rolls," Adkins said. "We
discovered that a lot of people affected never had received any type of benefits.
They were living on the money they were making."
She and Howard requested the assistance from Frankfort. Officials there sought
federal approval to implement the program. Adkins said it is the second time since
the 1990s that the program was made available in Pike County after a disaster. It is
the first time that qualifying recipients walk out of the registration process with
an automatically-funded EBT card, she said. Normally, recipients receive the card in
the mail and activate it prior to using it, she said.
The federally funded-program also allows retailers to accept food benefits for
prepared or hot foods - a service not usually provided for food benefits recipients.
Photo identification and verification of residency required. Proof of Social
Security number for all household members, take-home income, accessible resources
and statements regarding disaster-related expenses also requested.
For more information, call 606-433-7760.
Reprint from The Medical Leader
By MARY MEADOWS
Staff Writer
PIKEVILLE - A program that's helping food assistance for Pike County residents
affected by the July 17 flooding has expanded this week to cover more people.
The Disaster Supplement Nutrition Program (SNAP), operated through the Cabinet for
Health and Family Services, is providing additional resources for the purchase of
food for people who previously had food stamp benefits and people who previously
didn't qualify for food stamp benefits.
The program was initially opened to people living or working in areas with zip codes
41501, 41502, 41522, 41539 and 41557. It has now been expanded to also help people
living or working in areas with zip codes 41557, 41559, 41562, 41513 and 41540.
People living in these 10 areas are eligible to receive maximum food stamp benefits
for their households if they suffered losses in the flood. Qualifying individuals
include people who experienced property damage or loss, people who had losses
because their employer was flooded and people who lost food because their
electricity was out. It also provides the replacement of food stamps for flood
victims who lost their EBT cards and/or food during the flood.
The assistance will be provided during the Flood Relief for Kids event at the Eastern Kentucky Expo Center between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Aug. 7. Flood victims may
also apply at the Department for Community Based Services office, located on 295
Hambley Blvd. from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Aug. 7; and from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Aug.
9-11.
Jennifer Adkins, Service Region Administrator Associate for the agency, said that,
as of Friday morning, officials issued $76,000 in food stamps to qualifying
residents.
The federally-funded program was made available after Adkins and her supervisor
Susan Howard realized the need when they toured flooded areas of Pike County and
spoke to residents staying at Red Cross' emergency homeless shelter.
"The flood affected what we call the working poor and the workers who fall between
the cracks, the people who were never on the welfare rolls," Adkins said. "We
discovered that a lot of people affected never had received any type of benefits.
They were living on the money they were making."
She and Howard requested the assistance from Frankfort. Officials there sought
federal approval to implement the program. Adkins said it is the second time since
the 1990s that the program was made available in Pike County after a disaster. It is
the first time that qualifying recipients walk out of the registration process with
an automatically-funded EBT card, she said. Normally, recipients receive the card in
the mail and activate it prior to using it, she said.
The federally funded-program also allows retailers to accept food benefits for
prepared or hot foods - a service not usually provided for food benefits recipients.
Photo identification and verification of residency required. Proof of Social
Security number for all household members, take-home income, accessible resources
and statements regarding disaster-related expenses also requested.
For more information, call 606-433-7760.
# posted by Homer Owens @ 2:28 PM 
