What Are Food Stamp Guidelines & Benefits?
The national SNAP program helps low-income people buy food for themselves and their families. meat and cheese slices isolated on white image by Natika from Fotolia.com The United States food stamp program has been part of the country’s food assistance program since the mid 1930s. The paper stamps were given to low-income families and individuals, who met government guidelines, to use at the grocery store to purchase food items. Paper stamps have been replaced with EBT cards that work like debit cards. Because paper stamps are no longer used the program has been renamed the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Eligibility Guidelines There are different categories the government uses to determine the eligibility of a SNAP applicant. These are, the resources (referring to disposable income), income (from work and/or other assistance programs), household size, deductions, employment and the number of elderly and/or disabled people living in the applicants’ household (Ref. 1).
