skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

DCF: Record-Breaking Food Stamp Applications Could Break the System

play audio
Play

Friday, February 20, 2009   

Citing the highest volume of applications for Florida’s food stamp program in history, the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and non-profit leaders are joining forces to ask lawmakers for increased funding, using funds from the new federal economic recovery package. Florida added 400,000 people last year to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which manages food stamps. That growth rate led the nation. The agency handled over 3 million calls for assistance in October alone, a 40-percent increase over the year before.

Program Director Jennifer Lange says many are first time callers concerned about feeding their children.

"These are people who have never come to us before, who were working, who were self-sufficient, but who lost their jobs. They never thought they would need this kind of help before, and now they need it and now they qualify for it."

DCF has extended call center hours, improved technology, and partnered with community groups to reach people in need, says Lange. But, she admits the agency still can’t keep up with the volume.

"Volume is our number-one problem at this point. We’re the best in the country on accuracy, but we can’t keep going under the volume we’re struggling with."

Debra Susie, executive director of Florida Impact, says some money earmarked in the economic stimulus plan for food stamps will come to Florida, and each of those dollars will generate nearly double that for the local economy. She says non-profit groups have pitched in to help process applications, but state funding is still critical.

"We want to be sure and provide this additional funding request that DCF is making, so that we have enough staffing to meet the need and the growth that we’ve seen."

DCF officials have asked the legislature to help address the growing demand by funding nearly 300 new positions at the agency, but legislators are reluctant, given the current budget crisis.

For more information, visit www.myflorida.com and get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Social Issues

play sound

A 2023 study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center concluded the number of Nebraskans with a mental health or substance abuse disorder has pr…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021