Additional food assistance for 350,000 Michigan families in response to COVID-19 extended through April

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 20, 2021

CONTACT: Bob Wheaton, 517-241-2112

LANSING, Mich. - Approximately 350,000 Michigan families will continue to have access to additional food assistance benefits during April as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced today.

Michigan previously approved the additional food assistance beginning in March 2020 - and now that is being extended for April 2021 with approval from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service.

Eligible clients will see additional food assistance benefits on their Bridge Card April 24-May 4.

Additional benefits will be loaded onto Bridge Cards as a separate payment from the assistance that is provided earlier in the month.

'Michigan will recover from the pandemic as more people received the safe and effective vaccine, said MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel. 'In the meantime, MDHHS will continue to help families affected by the pandemic put food on the table.'

More than 1.3 million people in Michigan receive federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits through the state's Food Assistance Program.

Households eligible for Food Assistance Program benefits will receive additional benefits in April to bring all current SNAP cases to the maximum monthly allowance for that group size. This change only applies to customers not currently receiving the maximum benefit amount. The 350,000 households that receive increased benefits represent close to 50 percent of the more than 709,000 Michigan households that received food assistance in January. The remaining households already receive the maximum benefit.

Below are the maximum allowable benefits for SNAP customers based on their respective household size:

• One Person: $234
• Two Persons: $430
• Three Persons: $616
• Four Persons: $782
• Five Persons: $929
• Six Persons: $1,114
• Seven Persons: $1,232
• Eight Persons: $1,408

The federal government is providing additional funding to states for food assistance under House Resolution 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

Eligible families do not need to re-apply to receive the additional benefits. People who receive food assistance can check their benefits balance on their Michigan Bridge Card by going online to www.michigan.gov/MIBridges or calling a consumer service representative toll-free at 888-678-8914. They can ask questions about the additional benefits by calling or emailing their caseworker.

Customer service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Spanish and Arabic service is available. If you are deaf, deafblind, or hard of hearing or speech-impaired, call the Michigan Relay Center at 7-1-1.

Information around the COVID-19 outbreak is changing rapidly. The latest information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

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