In Pennsylvania, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recently got a lot of changes to its benefits and income limits. The Secretary of the Department of Human Services (DHS), Dr. Val Arkoosh, announced these changes. They are meant to make sure that families across Pennsylvania continue to get the help they need to get fresh, healthy food.
Along with the changes to income and benefits, Dr. Arkoosh stated that the SNAP benefit theft reimbursement program would be open for longer. The start date of this service was 2023, but it will now run until December 20, 2024. This extension gives beneficiaries who have their benefits stolen electronically until that date to ask for reimbursement.
Annual SNAP updates: more support for families
“Being able to feed your family is not only a matter of health; it’s also a matter of pride and safety,” Secretary Arkoosh said. She stressed how important it was to be able to get fresh food without having to choose between paying for it and other important things. This peace of mind is very important for families that want to stay stable.
SNAP helps more than two million people in Pennsylvania right now, which makes it an important tool for making sure that friends and community members can keep food on the table. In September 2024 alone, the program helped 2,021,263 people by giving them food aid that was paid for by the federal government. These funds help families get the food they need without putting their finances at risk.
Federal rules say that SNAP has to change its benefit amounts and income limits every year. This year, the updates include a raise of more than $5 a month for all recipients on average. It’s important to note that no one’s benefits will go down.
To find out if your family is eligible for SNAP, the best thing to do is to apply for the program. It’s very important for current beneficiaries to let the DHS know about any changes in their income or home, and to send in any reviews or renewals they get every six months. By doing this, they can keep their benefits from being interrupted.
How to keep your SNAP benefits active
Your Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card needs to be active in order for you to keep getting SNAP payments. As long as the EBT card is used at least once every nine months, government rules say that SNAP benefits do not expire.
You can check your EBT card information by calling 888-328-7366 and talking to Conduent, a DHS contractor. This will let you see your amount and transactions. You can also use the free myCOMPASS PA app, which works on both Apple and Android devices, to check your amount and change your PIN. It’s safe and easy to handle your benefits with this official DHS app.
Protecting against benefit theft: the threat of skimming
In the past few months, DHS has heard of several cases of benefit theft using a method called “skimming.” In this type of fraud, people put devices on ATMs or payment machines that read the EBT card’s magnetic stripe and copy its data. Criminals can then take the benefits that are saved on the card.
DHS tells SNAP recipients to keep their cards safe and never give out their PIN to anyone else so they don’t fall for these scams. It’s important to move quickly if you think your card has been skimmed.
How to request reimbursement for stolen benefits
If these fraudulent activities cause SNAP benefits to be stolen, the good news is that people who are eligible can ask for reimbursement until December 20, 2024. If someone online stole your benefits, you can ask for money back by filling out a benefit theft claim form. These forms are available in PDF and web-based formats.
Within 30 days of receiving your claim, DHS will confirm that it is valid. If your claim is accepted, you will get your money back within 10 days of the application being handled.
Families that depend on SNAP should feel safer and more stable thanks to the program’s annual changes and steps to stop people from stealing benefits. To make sure that families can continue to get the food they need, it is important to keep track of payment times, keep personal information up to date, and keep your EBT card safe.
The DHS is still dedicated to protecting SNAP recipients and making sure that no one is left without the help they need to meet their food needs. With ongoing work and changes, SNAP continues to be an important part of the health and well-being of millions of people in Pennsylvania.