MA SSI Recipients Get Automatic Food Stamps This Summer

In the summer and fall of 2005, over 67,000 Massachusetts recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will receive special food stamp cards in the mail - without ever having to go to a food stamp office to apply! The amount of the monthly food benefit - depending on income and shelter costs - will be between $38/month and $149/month. Food stamp cards will be mailed to 67,000 SSI recipients NOT currently getting food stamps.

How did this happen? Federal law requires Social Security Administration (SSA) offices to take food stamp applications for elders and persons with disabilities who apply for SSI. For many years, the SSA local offices failed to comply with this mandate and many SSI recipients did not receive food stamps. Further, Massachusetts has one of the lowest food stamp participation rates in the United States, including low participation of low income seniors and persons with disabilities. In response to advocacy by the Mass Law Reform Institute and the Food Stamp Improvement Coalition, the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) and the SSA agreed to petition the U.S. Department of Agriculture to create a special food stamp project. This special project is now called the Bay State CAP (Combined Application Project). Bay State CAP was created as a simplified and fast way for many SSI applicants and recipients to get basic food stamp benefits without going through the longer application process.

After months of work by advocates and state officials, major efforts are now underway to implement this project: In February of 2005, DTA provided Bay State CAP benefits to thousands of SSI recipients already getting food stamps but at a lower benefit amount than Bay State CAP. In February, SSA started taking Bay State CAP applications for new SSI applicants and for SSI recipients whose cases were scheduled for regular SSI case review. The end of June 2005, DTA will send letters and food stamp cards to 33,000 SSI recipients not already on food stamps advising them they have been approved for Bay State CAP and benefits are waiting in an account for them - without requiring the SSI recipient to apply. Another 34,000 SSI recipients will get a similar letter and food card in the fall. This will be a major conversion of thousands of cases to Bay State CAP so that SSI recipients don’t have to wait for their SSA case reviews to get this benefit. Finally, SSA local offices will continue to offer Bay State CAP benefits or regular food stamps to future SSI applicants and recipients whose SSI cases are up for review.

-Adapted from e-mail “ Thousands of Elder/Disabled SSI Recipients to Get Food Stamps the end of June!!!!”, from Pat Baker, MLRI, May 11, 2005 .

05/2005