State has hotline to help seniors get Food Stamps

More than 10,000 low-income Florida elders who haven't been able to navigate the state's online Food Stamp enrollment system will now be able to get personal help, thanks to a pilot project funded by a half-million-dollar grant received by the Department of Elder Affairs.

The Department received notification Sept. 10 that it had been awarded the 3-year grant, for a total of $496,192, from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Florida's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp program, has most applicants for benefits fill out requests online.

However, a large portion of Florida's 4.4 million seniors are not regular computer users, and statewide, 58 percent of eligible elders do not participate in SNAP.

The 3-year pilot project will enable elders who are reluctant, unable to visit an office location or unable to apply online to call the state's Elder Helpline and have a trained professional enter the online data for them.

The number is 1-800-96-ELDER (1-800-963-5337).

The pilot project will be conducted in 35 of Florida's 67 counties, including Alachua, Columbia and Gilchrist counties.

In its grant application, the Department set a goal of enrolling 5 percent of the eligible seniors, a total of 10,180 elders who are eligible for Food Stamps but do not receive them.

Elder Affairs is working with the Department of Children & Families, the agencies that received SNAP applications, to make the system work smoothly for Florida elders.

The Department of Elder Affairs is Florida's officially designated State Unit on Aging. For more information about the Department and its programs, visit http://elderaffairs.state.fl.us