I was in line behind a woman that was using a card to get her groceries. She said that it was just issued to her.

It is to be used just like a credit card and after her purchases were rung up she then entered it into the card machine in front of the checker. This is the same instrument that you or I would use if making purchases with a regular credit card.

After seeing this I started wondering how these people will be effected after Jan. 1. Evidently all these little machines in the grocery store must be complaint with a main computer somewhere that accepts Foodstamp cards.

Who makes sure the terminals at the stores are compliant with government computers? I think these food stamp recipitents are going to be very upset when they go to buy grocereis and their cards do not work.

-- Linda A. (adahi@muhlon.com), August 08, 1999

Answers

This is a new system that the welfare department has put together to prevent welfare recipients from selling their food stamps for drugs and money. The cards act just like your bank ATM card in that the welfare recipient has a certain amount of money in their account to spend on groceries. The other reason why welfare recipients are given the card is to save them the embarrassment of handing over food stamps to the checker and people standing in line watching the transaction with an opinion written on their face. You may be right about their cards not working at the roll over, but then again they may not get food stamps either.

-- antiwelfare (antiwelfare@antiwelfare.com), August 08, 1999.

They are allready glitching. I have a friend , her daughter is on ssi for the mentaly disabled, she gets food stamps also, told me she had problems this month trying to help her get her groceries. Another young mother of three on food stamps also told me she had trouble this month with her food stamps. I didn't get the details of the problems & they told me about this because I keep warning them not be so reliant on goverment income with the y2k problem just around the corner, and to try to prepare just in case there is problems.

-- mchenry (cymchenry@seidat.com), August 08, 1999.

Yes---they are messing up right and left. When I asked what would happen if the electricity went out I was told that the stores have a back up using the ole reliable manual system---can't you just imagine 20 people in line while the cashier tallies and writes up a bill? My caseload is in the poorest part of the city and of the state---lots of state moneys going to grocery stores and landlords--and subsadies(sp?)to employers and colleges and payments to all sizes of daycare providers. Big worry if there is no way for my clients to pay their bills, or the state to pay theirs. They don't have enough to store ahead---big worry for this social worker.

-- catherine plamondon (souldancer@pop.spkn.uswest.net), August 08, 1999.