We've been leaving a lot of money on the table in North Carolina. Government money to the tune of $1.8 billion, according to research gathered by MDC, a Chapel Hill nonprofit.
We're talking grants for college students, health insurance for children, Medicaid, food and nutrition benefits and federal tax money. It's all money available to people who really need it but either don't know that they're eligible or don't know how to apply for it.
A program offered in 40 counties and now expanding to the state's other 60 counties is changing that. Called the Benefit Bank of North Carolina, it's a project of Connectinc, a nonprofit in Battleboro that has spent 10 years working to help displaced workers, and MDC, which for the past 43 years has researched and developed innovative ways to advance equity.
MDC created and manages the national Work Supports Initiative that is bringing the Benefit Bank to the state. Connect inc is connecting community organizations with the technology they need to hook people up with the benefits they're missing and training counselors in those organizations to use the technology.
Since April, they've trained 600 counselors, said Jackie Savage, president of Connect inc. Better yet, in four months they've helped 8,000 families claim nearly $4 million in tax credits and refunds and about $1.7 million in food and nutrition benefits, she said.
So how do they do this? It starts with software and your tax return. The software does your taxes (free if you make $58,000 a year or less), and once it does, the program runs what Savage calls a "quick check." That quick check tells the counselors what benefits you might be eligible for.
Then you're asked a series of pretty simple questions. Answer those, and the software uses the information to fill in the food and nutrition application that is 16 pages long. It can use those same answers to apply for Medicaid Part D or to fill in a FAFSA application - which as any parent of a college-bound student will tell you usually takes hours and much hair pulling.
Not only does the technology cut down on the amount of time it takes a community or government aid office to fill out these forms, it gets help to those who need it faster.
Savage said it's particularly useful for people who, because of the current economic conditions, need help but - because they've never been in the "aid" system before - don't know what to do.
"We want to make it so that people right now can have something available that can help support them," she said. "We want to make sure children can eat and people aren't losing their homes or choosing between taking their medicine and paying their mortgage."
There are about 128 sites around the state - food banks, churches and the like - where people can go to use the software. Savage says, "We put it where people work, play and pray." To find a site near you, go to https://secure.thebenefitbank.com/ums?task=locator or call 888-756-2463. If you're a group that wants to sponsor a Benefit Bank site, call that same number and ask for ext. 244.
