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DHHR Opens Applications For School Clothing Allowance

The West Virginia DHHR Bureau of Family Assistance will begin accepting applications for school clothing allowance on July 1.

The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) Bureau of Family Assistance will accept school clothing allowance applications July 1 to 31. Eligible children enrolled in West Virginia schools will receive a $200 benefit towards buying school clothing.

Families with children who receive West Virginia WORKS cash assistance, parents or guardians of children in foster care, children 4-18 years old who receive SNAP benefits, or are enrolled in school and whose household income is 130 percent of the Federal Poverty Level as of June 30, 2023 will automatically receive school clothing allowance benefits.

Applicants must submit an income verification for July 2023 with applications for school clothing allowance.

“In 2022, 81,029 West Virginia children were assisted by the school clothing allowance program,” said Janie Cole, commissioner of DHHR’s Bureau for Family Assistance.

Recipients will receive an electronic benefit transfer card that will function like a debit card and can be used anywhere that accepts EBT cash transactions. Parents and guardians of children in foster care will receive their allowance benefit as a check.

All applications must be received by July 31.

Click here to apply or contact your local DHHR office.

Arriving At The New Normal

As the world steps into the actuality of the “new normal,” how do the end of these designations affect West Virginians?

The End Of The COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Brings Changes To Benefits

Thursday, May 11, the U.S. officially canceled the designation of COVID-19 as a public health emergency in the country.

Also this week, the World Health Organization (WHO) removed its designation for COVID-19 as a “global health emergency.”

For the first time in more than three years, the general public and health providers will live in a post-COVID-19 world, at least on paper.

As the world steps into the actuality of the “new normal,” how do the end of these designations affect West Virginians?

The Virus

While COVID-19 is no longer a health emergency, it is still an infectious illness that is a significant cause of acute illness and can cause long-term health complications all over the body known as long COVID. In special populations, COVID-19 is still life-threatening.

According to Clay Marsh, West Virginia’s COVID-19 czar, current research shows that staying current with recommended vaccination reduces the risk of long COVID, as does taking the oral anti-viral paxlovid or the drug metformin, if one tests positive for COVID-19.

“We have learned a lot about COVID-19, and to further ensure our health, we need to continue to practice what we learn,” Marsh said. “COVID-19 will remain an infectious disease that will cause illness, hospitalization and death, but by staying smart and following the guidance of our healthcare providers, we can keep each other safe and stop more preventive deaths from COVID-19.”

The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have recommended another booster for those over 65 years old and are four months or more from the last Omicron COVID-19 shot. Those who are immunocompromised will benefit from another shot as soon as two months after the last, according to the CDC.

The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) recommends West Virginians check the state’s vaccine calculator to see if they are due for a booster shot.

In West Virginia, 8,125 deaths have been attributed to COVID-19, as of May 10, 2023.

Pandemic-Era Healthcare Benefits

During the Public Health Emergency, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (WVCHIP) suspended eligibility redetermination processes, allowing coverage to continue regardless of changes in circumstances.

However, Medicaid and WVCHIP continuous eligibility provision was separated from the Public Health declaration in December 2022. This signaled the beginning of the unrolling of beneficiaries from these programs.

“For the past three years, the Medicaid program has been growing,” said Rhonda Rogombe, health and safety net policy analyist for the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy. “One because people were not losing coverage. And two, the pandemic triggered an economic downturn that like made a lot more people eligible for the program.”

When the upcoming unrolling of benefits was announced, advocates worried beneficiaries would lose their coverage because they may have moved over the pandemic.

“Most of the denials that we’re seeing on the national level, are for procedural reasons, which means that somebody didn’t determine their paperwork or fill it out correctly,” Rogombe said. “We don’t have specific state numbers yet. We still see them by the end of the month. But West Virginia follows natural trends when most people who are losing coverage are losing it because they didn’t complete and return that paperwork on time.”

Jaqueline Hale is the Virginia State Network Director at Unite Us. Unite Us West Virginia is a network of health and social service providers. The network is supported by an West Virginia-based Unite Us team focused on community engagement, network health and optimization and customer success. Hale also covers portions of southern West Virginia.

“The fact that people haven’t had to do this for three years, so one, that could be out of practice,” Hale said. “I know, I’m always struggling to find, you know, where’s the shot record? Where’s that last pay stub? Right? How do I download it from wherever if you even have that capacity to have access to an online payroll. So it’s just a heavy administrative burden and recognizing that a lot of our families, a lot of our individuals are dealing with multiple complex issues.”

Those who may have lost their benefits or health insurance coverage during the unrolling process can submit the required renewal forms for coverage redetermination through West Virginia People’s Access To Help (WVPATH).

For those who no longer qualify, West Virginia Navigator is a free, non-profit program that offers enrollment assistance for the Health Insurance Marketplace and is available to any West Virginia resident.

SNAP and Food Banks

According to advocates for food security, charitable programs are unable to support those facing hunger fully. A combination of charity and government assistance programs are necessary to help bridge the meal gap, especially in a post-COVID economy with record-breaking inflation rates.

Cyndi Kirkhart is the CEO of Facing Hunger Food Bank, based in Huntington. It is one of only two food banks in West Virginia. The other is Mountaineer Food Bank, based in Gassaway.

Food insecurity will only increase along with inflation costs. Kirkhart said she budgeted $2.5 million to purchase food for the Facing Hunger Food Bank in 2022. The bank actually expended $4 million to feed its community.

Along with other changes to beneficiary requirements, on July 1, the work requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for “able bodied adults without dependents” resumes, statewide.

Since April 2020, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources has issued SNAP emergency allotments, increasing each household’s monthly benefit.

Now, those monthly SNAP benefits have returned to the pre-COVID-19 Public Health Emergency level based on the household’s income, assets, household size, and other non-financial factors. About 170,000 households have been affected.

SNAP is a program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture administered by DHHR’s Bureau for Family Assistance.

The “able-bodied adults without dependents” work requirement reinstatement will impact SNAP recipients ages 18 to 49 without children or other qualifying dependents, and who lack an identified condition that would prevent them from participating in a qualifying work, volunteer, or education activity.

“The stigma associated with the word ‘able bodied’ insinuates that they are unable to ascertain work and that’s not entirely the case,” Devon Lopez, associate director of customer and community success at Unite Us West Virginia, said. “However, our platform really is designed to empower organizations to help connect individuals in need for services. And so really taking the stigma associated with what asking for help might look like for individuals in the community, and really empowering organizations to help be the advocate for them and connect them to those resources.”

According to the DHHR, all potentially affected individuals will receive a letter in mid-May with more information.

“We know that someone’s overall health is adversely affected by their ability to be able to access food and proper nutrition,” Lopez said. “So in the past three years, they’ve been able to access, you know, these benefits that have been providing them with food boxes and meals. However, as they no longer qualify on this public health emergency ends, and they’re, they’ll have to re enroll for these or just not qualify for them at all anymore, we’re going to see a severe increase in those with those food needs.”

Kirkhart said work requirements are more complicated for those living in rural areas.

“You know, obviously folks focus on some of the expectations that there’s work associated with getting benefits and those type of things,” Kirkhart said. “The narrative never changes about that, because we serve very rural and remote communities where there is no public transportation. There are few if any jobs are volunteer opportunities to complete hours.”

Kirkhart also said her food bank and its mobile units are already seeing an increase in need in the community from the beginning of this year’s unrolling of beneficiaries. She expects to see more families in need after their stores of food run out.

“We’re kind of seeing the increases that I kind of expected would occur,” Kirkhart said. “So right now we’re about 25 percent (of spent funding), over the previous like 23 percent. Our mobile pantries in this last month have really started to grow. So I expect statistically, after review of this month, we’ll probably see more than 35 percent because sometimes people had food resources, and you know, they had kind of stocked up in anticipation.”

Officials Report ‘Positive Momentum’ In Restructuring

During a briefing, Dr. Jeff Coben, interim secretary of the DHHR, was asked multiple questions about the progress of the restructuring process of the agency.

Officials said in a Justice administrative briefing they have “positive momentum” toward restructuring the Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR).

Legislation passed earlier this year directed the DHHR to separate after years of turmoil within the agency. House Bill 2006 terminates the DHHR beginning Jan. 1, 2024 and creates three departments: the Department of Human Services, the Department of Health and the Department of Health Facilities. The bill was signed into law on March 4.

During the briefing, Dr. Jeff Coben, interim secretary of the DHHR, was asked multiple questions about the progress of the restructuring process.

“The legislation that’s been introduced is important, but equally, if not more important, is it’s building on our programs, getting the workforce in place that we need, strengthening that workforce, strengthening the families, and making it so that people are through the economic work that’s been done through the gut by the governor and the legislature, through creating jobs and opportunities for people,” Coben said.

Coben said the DHHR hired 40 new Child Protective Service (CPS) workers since January. The department is currently 72 percent staffed according to the Child Welfare Dashboard.

Coben also noted that the structure of the agency has been in place for about 35 years and said it is important to communicate with federal partners as the restructuring progresses.

“We’ve got a nine-month timeframe to prepare for the three new departments that will be in place,” he said. “We have to work very closely with our federal agencies, and federal partners, because so much of the funding that supports the programs of DHHR, and the future programs of the three new departments is done in collaboration with our federal partners.”

The DHHR reported a $7,674,467,799 budget for the fiscal year 2024 during January’s Interim legislative session. Tara Buckner, chief financial officer of the DHHR testified at that hearing that 75 percent of the DHHR’s budget is made up of federal funding.

These federal funds provide for programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

“Our goal from the beginning has been to really focus and strengthen our child protective services agencies, our foster care system, and really at our most vulnerable citizens across the state,” Coben said. “And I think that we’ve we’ve really had some strong positive momentum and continue to build on that momentum.”

Unite Us W.Va. Provides Assistance During Rollback Of Pandemic Benefits

Now that the state public health emergency has ended, monthly SNAP benefits have returned to the pre-COVID-19 public health emergency level based on the household’s income, assets, household size, and other non-financial factors.

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, the federal government sought to help families through temporary emergency increases to benefit programs including Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

Since April 2020, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) has issued SNAP, CHIP, and Medicaid emergency allotments, increasing each household’s monthly benefits.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 37.3 percent of West Virginia households receiving SNAP benefits have children. About 170,000 households have been affected in the state.

Devon Lopez is the community engagement manager for Unite Us, West Virginia. She said these changes not only create a hunger cliff, but in rural communities, the rolling back of benefits could create food deserts. A food desert is an area that has limited access to affordable and nutritious food.

“So this kind of becomes a larger issue than an individual just not receiving enough, you know, benefits to receive food. This is being experienced across all social wellness, but obviously, SNAP is the latest to be hit with this,” Lopez said. “And so what we’re seeing in West Virginia, is that we know one in six West Virginians actually receive SNAP benefits. And beyond that, what we do know is that a lot of those folks who receive SNAP benefits are in our rural communities.”

Lopez said the rolling back of pandemic-era benefits often has negative effects on organizations that provide assistance, like food banks.

Cyndi Kirkhart is the CEO of Facing Hunger Food Bank, based in Huntington. It is one of only two food banks in West Virginia. The other is Mountaineer Food Bank, based in Gassaway.

Food insecurity will only increase along with inflation costs, Kirkhart said. She budgeted $2.5 million to purchase food for the Facing Hunger Food Bank in 2022. The bank actually expended $4 million to feed its community.

“It is going to provide a lot of, you know, negative effects on the organizations or entities that may be providing those assistance over time and we’re gonna see those you know, pull back as well,” Lopez said.

Unite Us, West Virginia aims to mitigate the fallout from unrolling benefits by providing an electronic platform for people and organizations to find assistance.

“We enable cross-sector collaboration between community-based organizations, government entities, health systems, nonprofits, really bringing all of those folks together on one single platform or infrastructure electronically,” Lopez said. “I call it the three C’s. It allows these organizations to all collaborate, communicate and coordinate for an individual’s care together beyond their four walls.”

Lopez said Unite Us is able to bring everyone together at one single table to meet the individual in need, where they’re at, and provide care and assistance.

“We’re so community-driven, because there’s multiple of me across the country that live and work in the communities working to build trust,” Lopez said. “And we’re not just an entity that comes in and says we’re going to help you like a lot of times we see in West Virginia. I’m from here, I believe in this and I’m doing the work on the ground.”

Unite Us is a unique program, according to Lopez, because they provide a team that’s ready to support people and organizations every step of the way.

“And I think one of the most unique things about the work that we do is the fact that our platform is absolutely at no cost for our community-based organizations so they can leverage this technology, the platform for referrals for free at no cost,” Lopez said.

Officials Remind Recipients Of Public Assistance To Check Their Benefits Status

During a Justice administration briefing, Ret. Maj. Gen. Jim Hoyer, director of the Joint Interagency COVID-19 Task Force, reminded West Virginians who receive state assistance to check the status of their benefits in light of the ending of the National Public Health Emergency.

“This does not mean that COVID is over,” Hoyer said. “But what this does mean is a change in certain policies and funding in response to the pandemic that may have an impact on certain people in the state of West Virginia. Particularly those related to Medicaid, CHIP and SNAP.”

Since April 2020, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) has issued SNAP emergency allotments, increasing each household’s monthly benefit.

Now, those monthly SNAP benefits have returned to the pre-COVID-19 public health emergency level based on the household’s income, assets, household size, and other non-financial factors. About 170,000 households will be affected.

With the emergency set to end on May 11th, those affected individuals can go to www.wvpath.org or call 1-800-642-8589 to check their benefit status.

“The joint interagency task force has been assigned to work with the governor’s deputy chief of staff, to work with the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, FEMA, and the threat preparedness folks within the Department of Health and Human Resources and other agencies to make sure that close out is done correctly and in an expeditious manner,” Hoyer said. “So far facilities that have participated in these audits have received strong applause for their excellent record keeping and effective distribution of benefits. West Virginia is moving along just fine in those initial audits.”

Hoyer also noted the anniversary of the state’s vaccine calculator, noting that nearly one million calculations have been done using the online tool.

“It was the first of its kind in the nation and ours has become the national template,” Hoyer said. “And I believe we demonstrated that with this calculator, it is important that folks continue to pay attention and check the calculator.”

Hoyer also asked the public to keep up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations, noting that 400 Americans still die each day due to COVID-19-related illness.

Unwinding Medicaid: Changes To SNAP Worry Food Security Advocates

Advocates and officials are warning that upcoming changes to SNAP benefits could put West Virginia households and food banks in jeopardy.

Starting March 1, some struggling families may have less government support for food as COVID-19 pandemic-era emergency allotments come to a close.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps, provide temporary help for people going through hard times by providing supplemental money to buy food until they can get back on their feet.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 37.3 percent of West Virginia households receiving SNAP benefits have children.

Since April 2020, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources has issued SNAP emergency allotments, increasing each household’s monthly benefit.

“Early on in the pandemic, Congress and the USDA, allowed states to increase everyone’s SNAP benefits up to the maximum level, regardless of what they would normally be qualified for based on their household income, assets and expenses,” said Kent Nowviskie, deputy commissioner of the DHHR’s Bureau for Family Assistance. “As a result of the omnibus spending bill, the Consolidated Appropriations Act that was passed in December, Congress brought that portion of the snap or that option for states to an end.”

According to Nowviskie, Congress plans to repurpose the funding of emergency allotments to allow states to set up a permanent ongoing summer EBT program for children who are eligible for free and reduced lunch in schools.

“SNAP benefits come directly from the federal government, and we disperse those to the clients in West Virginia. So essentially, those are federal monies, we determine eligibility according to a state plan that is essentially like a contract between the state and the USDA, for how will determine that eligibility. And then on a monthly basis, we draw down those funds from the federal government and push them out to eligible SNAP clients,” Nowviskie said. “We do have other sources of funding that support some nutritional efforts. One of the big ones is our TANF funding, which we have used to vastly expand some of the supports that we have available across the state.”

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, is also known as WV Works, a program assisting families near the poverty level to remain self-sufficient.

Advocates and officials are warning that upcoming changes to SNAP benefits could put West Virginia households and food banks in jeopardy.

“So, according to the DHHR, all households will see at least a $95 reduction, statewide, the average per household is going to be around $120 reduction,” said Josh Lohnes, a research assistant professor at WVU who directs the work of the food justice lab and the center for resilient communities. “And again, that’s based on size and income. So for some households, it may be hundreds of dollars reduced, and for others, it might be less, but every single household is at least gonna see a $95 cut in March.”

These changes will not only affect West Virginia families directly but food banks across the state as well.

“Food insecurity is pretty much a poverty problem and a low wage problem, the vast majority of those receiving SNAP benefits are working families that are simply not earning enough wages to be above 130 percent of the poverty line,” Lohnes said. “So that drives food insecurity, and low wages, as do increasing food prices.”

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, a one-person household that earns $14,580 or less annually is considered to be in poverty. A three-person household is considered in poverty if they earn $24,860 or less annually.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index, food inflation rates rose an average of 11 percent in December 2022 alone.

Cyndi Kirkhart is the CEO of Facing Hunger Food Bank, based in Huntington. It is one of only two food banks in West Virginia. The other is Mountaineer Food Bank, based in Gassaway.

Food insecurity will only increase along with inflation costs, Kirkhart said she budgeted $2.5 million to purchase food for the Facing Hunger Food Bank in 2022. The bank actually expended $4 million to feed its community.

“That’s not sustainable for our work. We’re having to really kind of scale back and rather than prepackaged boxes, that we’ve distributed, our mobile pantries and stuff, now we’re getting down to staple items that will benefit a family,” Kirkhart said. “So at a time when the communities at the center of our work need us most, we actually are having to scale back in what we can provide to them as well as our pantries.”

“I can’t underscore enough, while the rhetoric may be that folks receive all kinds of money with SNAP benefits, that is patently not true,” Kirkhart said. “It is not enough for any family, to be able to live alone. It takes other financial resources to support a family and their food needs. All you have to do is try the SNAP challenge one time and try and live on what is about $4.20 a day.”

To mitigate food insecurity for West Virginia families, Nowviskie said the DHHR was able to use TANF funding to increase the number of family support centers throughout West Virginia. He said 37 centers were added to the grant cycle in 2022.

“And those are physical locations that offer a variety of services from respite for caregivers, to parenting classes, some of them do cooking, education, financial education, those sorts of things,” Nowviskie said. “They all also are required by the grant agreement with us to maintain a food pantry, a baby pantry, and a hygiene pantry.”

Furthermore, Nowviskie said any West Virginia family struggling with food insecurity after this rollback of SNAP benefits can contact their local county DHHR office and speak with a caseworker about options or visit the agency’s website for a list of resources.