Social Services
FOOD STAMP PROGRAM
The purpose of the Food Stamp Program is to help with supplementing a household’s food budget to provide better nutrition in order to alleviate hunger and malnutrition. The program will meet its goals by permitting low-income households to obtain a more nutritious diet by helping to supplement all eligible household’s food purchasing power. It is the intent of the U.S. Congress to promote the general welfare and to safeguard the health and well being of the population of the Nation by raising levels of nutrition among low-income households. The intent is also to help provide food in cases of emergency and financial disaster. A household’s eligibility for benefits is based on their monthly income, household composition and shelter expenses. Eligible households in Virginia receive their food stamp benefits electronically. Households receive a plastic Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card with a magnetic stripe and use a personal identification number (PIN) to access the benefits.
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/benefit/foodstamp.html
TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE TO NEEDY FAMILIES (TANF)
The purpose of TANF is to: provide financial assistance to needy families so that children under age 18 may be cared for in their own homes by one or both parents, or in the homes of relatives; end the dependence of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage; prevent and reduce the incidence of out-of-wedlock pregnancies; and encourage the formation and maintenance of two-parent families. If found eligible assistance is paid monthly, with periodic reviews of eligibility scheduled.
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/benefit/tanf/index.html
GENERAL RELIEF (GR)
The GR program is a local option program designed to provide maintenance or certain emergency assistance that cannot be provided through other means (typically through the federal programs). Local departments of social services design GR plans to meet the needs of each community within budget limits. It is financed through state and local funding, with eligibility based on a person meeting certain specific components that are available through the City of Roanoke Social services: 1) monthly assistance payment to persons with a disability, of at least 30 days duration, who have no other source of income; 2) monthly assistance to individuals holding custody of a non-related minor child (individuals in need of assistance for children related to them must apply for TANF, not GR); and 3) a vendor payment to a funeral home for burial (actual internment is at the City Cemetery) for those who are deceased with no means of payment of burial expenses. All monthly payments to eligible individuals are reduced by available income.
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/benefit/gr/index.html and contact the local Department of Social Services for specific programs offered within that locality.
MEDICAID
Medicaid is an assistance program that pays medical service providers for medical services rendered to eligible individuals and/or payment of Medicare premiums for certain qualifying individuals. Persons applying for assistance in this program must fit into certain basic categories, such as the following: pregnant women; children under 19 years; those persons associated with TANF eligibility; disabled individuals, adults over the age of 65, blind individuals, those needing assistance with nursing home, personal care or adult living facilities; and certain referrals for Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment. The Medicaid eligibility determination consists of an evaluation of an individual's situation that compares each of the individual's circumstances (income, resources, property ownership, etc) to an established standard. All applicants and recipients of Medicaid must provide documentation of their citizenship and identity. Persons found eligible receive a Medicaid Card to present to their medical service provider.
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/benefit/me_famis/index.html
AUXILIARY GRANT PROGRAM (AG)
The AG Program provides income supplements to recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and certain other aged, blind or disabled individuals residing in a licensed assisted living facility (ALF) or an approved adult foster care home (AFCH), licensed by the state Department of Social Services. This assistance is to ensure that adults are able to maintain a standard of living that meets a basic level of need. However, not all ALF's accept AG recipients.
An individual's AG payment includes a personal allowance. This money may be used by the adult for such things as medical co-payments, over-the-counter and non-prescription medications, prescriptions not covered by Medicaid, dental care, eye glasses, clothing, personal toiletries, snacks, sodas and activities not provided by the ALF or AFC provider. Regulations do not allow the personal allowance to be used for required recreational activities, administration of accounts, debts owed the provider for basic services or charges for laundry that exceed $10 per month.
Before an individual can receive an AG, eligibility for the program must be determined by the local department of social services in the locality where the adult resided prior to admission to the ALF. To be eligible for AG in Virginia, an individual must meet all of the following: be 65 or over or be blind or be disabled; reside in a licensed assisted living facility or approved adult foster care home; be a citizen of the United States or an alien who meets specified criteria; have a non-exempted (countable) income less than the total of the auxiliary grant rate approved for the assisted living facility plus the personal needs allowance; have non-exempted resources less than $2,000 for one person or $3,000 for a couple; have been assessed and determined to need assisted living facility care or adult foster care placement.
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/family/as/auxgrant.html
STATE-LOCAL HOSPITALIZATION (SLH)
The purpose of the SLH program is to assist eligible individuals to pay for medical services received from a hospital (either as an inpatient or outpatient), free-standing ambulatory surgical center, or a Health Department Clinic visit. This program does not help cover expenses for the doctor fees, X-rays, lab work or medications. A person must apply within 30 days of hospital care (prior to or after receipt of services). All payments are made directly to the medical facility as long as funding for the locality is available. For the City of Roanoke residents, the application period typically begins May 1 and runs through at least October 31. Persons found eligible are enrolled for coverage for only 180 days. Reapplication for a new medical service is permitted. Income and resource limits apply to this program.
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/benefit/slh/index.html
FAMILY ACCESS TO MEDICAL INSURANCE SECURITY (FAMIS)
This is a comprehensive health insurance program for Virginia’s children. FAMIS is administered by the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) and is funded by the state and federal government. FAMIS also pays for well-child check-ups and immunizations that will help keep a child healthy.
FAMIS covers uninsured low-income children who are not eligible for FAMIS Plus (children’s Medicaid) if all of the following are met: he is not eligible for FAMIS Plus due to excess income; he is under age 19 and a resident of Virginia; he is uninsured; he is not a member of a family eligible for health benefits coverage under the State Employee Health Insurance Plan on the basis of a family member’s employment with a State agency; he is not a member of a family who has dropped health insurance coverage on him within 4 months of the application without good cause; he is not an inmate of a public institution; he is not an inpatient in an institution for mental diseases; he meets the Medicaid Non-Financial Eligibility Requirements with certain exceptions; and he has gross family income less than or equal to 200% FPL.
Once found eligible, in order to continue eligibility, the caretaker must renew the child’s FAMIS coverage every 12 months. Responsible caretakers will receive only one permanent DMAS health insurance card for each enrolled child, so care must be taken to not lose it.
Further, FAMIS Select, another component of FAMIS, might help pay your monthly health insurance premium for family coverage, if offered by your employer.
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/benefit/me_famis/index.html
VIRGINIA INITIATIVE FOR EMPLOYMENT NOT WELFARE (VIEW)
VIEW is a program providing employment, education, and training opportunities to recipients of Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) in attaining the goal of self-sufficiency. The program goals are to offer Virginians living in poverty the opportunity to:
achieve economic independence by removing barriers and disincentives to work and by providing positive incentives to work; provide work skills necessary for self-sufficiency; offer job seeking/job keeping classes; allow families living in poverty to contribute materially to their own self-sufficiency; set out the responsibilities of and expectations for recipients of public assistance; obtain actual work experience through VIEW.
Link for additional information:
Services – http://www.dss.virginia.gov/files/division/bp/tanf/policy/manual/1000.pdf
Eligibility Factors – http://www.dss.virginia.gov/files/division/bp/tanf/policy/manual/900.pdf
REFUGEE ASSISTANCE
Refugees are entitled to apply for the same benefits and service programs that are available to U.S. citizens. They may, therefore, be eligible to receive cash or medical assistance and may also take advantage of a number of service programs that are offered in Virginia.
Refugees who do not meet the requirements for mainstream programs – such as TANF, FAMIS, Medicaid, SSI, etc. – may be eligible for specialized programs that provide benefits and services exclusively to refugees. This particular Refugee Assistance occurs during their first 8 months in this country. The Virginia Refugee Resettlement Program is designed to address the particular needs of refugees in order to help them transition to life in the United States and achieve self-sufficiency.
If determined eligible, this program provides the following benefits and services, in addition to the typical public at large programs, to the refugee population in Virginia: Culturally sensitive child welfare services to refugee unaccompanied minors; Refugee cash and medical transitional assistance to eligible refugees and their families; Refugee social services; Domestic Health Assessment; Targeted assistance, in two federally designated areas of the state, for refugees who are particularly hard to serve and may need special assistance in order to achieve self-sufficiency; and, Specialized services implemented through discretionary
programs targeted to address critical unmet needs in refugee communities (e.g. the Refugee Elderly Assistance Program [REAP], designed to meet the special needs of refugees who are age 60 or older and who may have a more difficult time becoming self-sufficient).
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/family/ons/index.html
EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE
This program is intended to provide help to families with children when a fire or natural disaster has occurred and they have no means to provide for emergency shelter and replacement of basic household needs. Persons are to apply for the TANF program to be screened for eligibility for this component. Emergency Assistance can be used to provide items such as food, shelter items, clothing, repair or replacement of household equipment which has been destroyed or rendered unusable and moving or storage of household equipment. Emergency Assistance cannot be granted when a community agency, insurance policies, or other immediate resources are known to meet the particular need promptly in that particular type of emergency. If other resources are available but are insufficient to meet the particular immediate needs, Emergency Assistance may be granted. Evidence must be entered in the case record that specific community resources have been investigated. Likewise, income immediately available to the family, such as cash on hand or money in the bank at the time of application, must be evaluated in determining the amount of assistance granted. Note: Anticipated wages must be evaluated even though they may not be available to meet the emergency need. Payment for purchase, repair, moving or storage of household equipment must be made by the vendor method to the provider of goods or services. Payment to meet other needs may be either a money payment to the recipient or a vendor payment to the provider, whichever is most practicable and advantageous to the family.
Link for additional information: http://www.dss.virginia.gov/files/division/bp/tanf/policy/manual/200.pdf
ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (EA)
The Energy Assistance Program assists low-income households in meeting their immediate home energy needs. However, be aware that the Energy Assistance Program is not intended to meet the household’s total home energy cost during the heating season. Household’s must continue to make monthly payments on their bills. To be eligible, households must have a heating or cooling expense and gross monthly income may not exceed 130 percent of the federal poverty level. The Energy Assistance Program consists of three basic components:
· Fuel Assistance: This primarily provides assistance with purchasing home heating fuel. The application period runs from the second Tuesday of October through the second Friday of November. Credit Authorizations are sent to the appropriate heating vendor who is authorized to submit billing to the state for payment to the customers account.
· Crisis Assistance: This is intended to meet a household’s emergency heating need. Assistance offered includes one-time only heat security deposit, purchase of home heating fuel, payment of heat utility bill, payment for emergency shelter, and/or heating equipment repair/purchase. Applications may be completed November 1 through March 15. NOTE: Assistance is based on availability of funds.
· Cooling Assistance: This component provides purchase or repair of cooling equipment and/or payment for electricity bills needed to operate cooling equipment. The application period for this component runs from June 15 through August 15. NOTE: Assistance is based on availability of funds.
· Weatherization Assistance: The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) administers this program. The program assists households with energy efficiency and air infiltration measures. To be eligible for any type of Weatherization Assistance, certain income and citizenship criteria must be met and the household must contain at least one vulnerable person (i.e. child under age 6, elderly person over age 65, or disabled person). To apply for Weatherization Assistance, visit the DHCD Web site.
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