In Los Angeles, city employees swung into action to enroll seniors in need. But soon they got a seemingly contradictory message: Some seniors, they were told, were too needy to qualify.
Beginning in May, L.A. officials instructed workers taking calls for the meals program that elderly people were eligible only if their incomes fell between roughly $25,000 and $75,000 for a household of one. That meant that the very poorest — those earning under $24,981 annually — could not access the new program.
Los Angeles officials pointed to guidance sent out by the state, which said that eligible participants must earn “no less than 200% of the federal poverty limit.” Other California cities and counties have cited the same rule.
The reason, state officials say, is that Great Plates Delivered is meant for seniors who aren’t accessing other nutrition programs.
The costs of the new program are reimbursed in part through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which has mandated that the money cannot be used to assist people who are benefiting from other government programs. Among them is CalFresh, the California program for food stamps, which is limited to households earning 200% of the federal poverty limit or less.
California wants cities and counties “to serve as many individuals as could be served within this program — while being able to recoup the costs” from FEMA, said Brian Ferguson, a spokesman for the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
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