Economy has many Madison Countians reluctantly asking for government aid

The Madison County Department of Family and Children Service office reports not only seeing more faces, but new faces this year.

“It’s not just an increase in volume,” Madison County DFCS director Lisa Plank said. “These are people who have never had to come to DFCS before. People have never had to ask for this kind of assistance before.”

The number of Madison County families on food stamps has increased by nearly 200 families this year, according to Plank.

Madison County reported that, as of October, 1,217 county families were using food stamps.

There are also more Madison Countians on family Medicaid (138 more cases) and adult blind and disabled Medicaid (43 more cases). The DFCS office is also handling 15 more childcare cases than last year.

Businesses and plants closing have certainly affected the DFCS caseload.

Many Madison County workers have lost benefits, like insurance.

“That’s almost more of a crisis for them than losing that income is losing that coverage for them and their children,” Plank said.

Asking for aid for the first time is not an easy thing for these people to do, according to Plank. Those applicants aren’t familiar with the process and often get defensive about their plight.

“Folks are embarrassed with having to come, so that puts their guard up,” she said.

Making the situation tougher is that being out of work doesn’t automatically insure assistance, either.

The county DFCS office — in compliance with federal guidelines — must also take into account property ownership and other finances before extending aid.

“The first month after you lose your job, you may not be eligible for assistance,” Plank explained. “We take a lot of time talking to folks about that.”

For example, Plank tells the hard-luck story of a man who recently lost his job and can no longer provide health coverage to his ailing wife.

But they’re not eligible for aid through the DFCS yet.

“How is she going to get treatment? So we spend a lot of time trying to find referrals,” Plank said.

Madison County DFCS chairman Gary Locke said there seems to be a “hole in the system.”

“If we’re talking in terms of these people losing their jobs and they’re not eligible, I mean they still get hungry,” Locke said.

Board member Ann Stone said people could easily find themselves in that situation.

“Just think, if you lost your job or your pension,” board member Ann Stone said. “It doesn’t matter where you live or what you have.”

The caseload is likely to only increase at Madison County DFCS.

Unemployment benefits are now starting to run out for those who lost their jobs in June, July and August.

“As folks start to lose their unemployment benefit, then we’re going to see an increase,” Plank said.

She did note, however, that the President Bush signed an extension for unemployment.

But unless the economy rebounds, this year might pale in comparison to next year for DFCS workers.

“Next year, at this time, if there isn’t a change, I see an even larger increase in our applications and people receiving our services,” Plank said.

SOME GOOD NEWS: COUNTY DFCS WELL WITHIN BUDGET

With the economy ailing, the Madison County DFCS appears to be keeping its spending in check.

With 91.6 percent of the fiscal year complete, the county DFCS office has spent just 62.2 percent of its budget.

“We are operating well within our allotment for county money,” Plank said.