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June 21, 2004 Food Stamps: Only enough to buy you enough food for two weeks and you have to stretch the food for two more weeks. Doesn’t allow for diabetics who have to pay more for sugar free food or Lactose intolerant people and have to pay more for soy milk products. Food stamps only buys you food that you cook, not cooked food. It doesn’t buy you soap, shampoo, toothpaste, dish soap, paper towels, etc. S.S.I. :(Social Security Income) pays you enough money to pay utilities, phone and second hand shoes/clothes but not rent/mortgage , new clothes, new shoes, gasoline, car or car insurance. If you are fortunate to have somewhere to live, if you can’t work. It comes once a month and is gone in a couple of days. Indigent Care: Comes to you if you are indigent (no job, no income) and pays for doctors within your county. If your doctor happens to be outside the county, you are out of luck. You can’t get any pain medication on Indigent care, but you can get serious medicine like heart medicine as long as it isn‘t over three prescriptions. A.F.D.C. or TANF: Pays a check monthly but isn’t enough to put children through school. The prices go up on everything but the child still doesn’t have enough money for extras, like: musical instruments or extra curricular activities (Scouts; skating lessons, dance lessons, etc) so the child never gets a well rounded education. Unemployment Insurance: Limited, doesn’t take care of you until you find a job and isn’t enough to support a family. Interest groups for the poor (example: Salvation army): doesn’t always have money for the poor. Sometimes , it is out of food and shelter. Food Banks: For those who don’t qualify for Food Stamps or don’t get enough for the family, let you have a lot of food but it is comprised of out of date cans and boxes…sometimes up to a year out of date, stale bread, sweets, dried fruit, sour fruit juice, and an assortment of foods that the groceries can’t sell. I have personally gotten ill on food bank food. I have opened plastic containers of rice to find bugs with wings, and weevils in the flour and cornmeal. Conclusion: Is it fair? If someone is Middle class and is out of work from layoffs or cutbacks in personnel, is it fair? I went from a salary of $30,000 a year to nothing because of an illness. I don’t think it is a bit fair. I think the government agencies don’t have a clue as to what they do. ------------ About the author: Janyce Helen Van Es is a baby boomer who has written six books: "The Flying Dutchman", "Unconditional", "A Spiritual Gift", "Teacher", "Blind Spot", and "Too Many Turtles". She is a retired schoolteacher living in her Lake Cottage in North Texas. Email: odie@texoma.net Tell a friend about this site! ------------ |
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