The food assistance program is meant to help families and individuals who live near the poverty line put healthy food on the table. To qualify, a household of two with children can make no more than $2,429 in gross income per month, $3,052 for a household of three or $3,675 for a household of four, according to a state website on the program. SNAP also has limits on savings and other resources to qualify.
Benefits, which total more than $107 million a month in Massachusetts, are federally funded. The national and state governments split the cost of administering the program. Recipients receive benefits on Electronic Benefit Transfer, or EBT, cards, which limit what the money can be spent on.
Kehoe said the state has worked over the past few years to improve access to the SNAP program. Eight to 10 years ago, Massachusetts ranked 48th in the nation for the number of residents who were eligible and had actually signed up for food stamps, she said. Today, the state ranks eighth.
The state has taken steps such as shortening applications for seniors, allowing a medical deduction aimed at helping the elderly and disabled, lowering how often participants have to recertify that they qualify and holding outreach and health expos, Kehoe said. The agency has especially targeted seniors, many of whom saw a stigma attached to accepting food assistance, she said.
Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/archive/x1425876941/Food-stamp-use-jumps-85-percent-in-four-years#ixzz1Pis1gm7M
