Applying for government benefits just got much easier in Maryland

Applying for administration assistance can be hard stressful and a long ordeal not to mention embarrassing Maryland is trying to make the process easier and cut down selected of the red tape It is extremely stressful to sit here and have to go over and over and meet different people and have to sit there and tell everybody your story Aquitia Nixa Harley mentioned It s hard You don t want to keep telling people how messed up your life is how much you re struggling and the things that you need when you feel like as a parent you should be able to be there and provide for your kids For the mother of four it s meant hauling strollers onto buses traipsing through rain and snow and sitting around leadership offices waiting for her turn Her two youngest children have special necessities Just waiting alone hours sitting on the phone could take minutes to an hour depending on wait time she mentioned regarding how long it often takes her to apply for certain benefits That s why the state of Maryland is streamlining the process of applying for benefits such as Medicaid SNAP TANF and WIC not to mention strength and emergency assistance programs Rather than make those calls and visit different offices there s one online application that can be filled out on a computer or over the phone in much less time state functionaries explained Oftentimes if their situation merits them being qualified for one generally it means their situation merits them being qualified for others as well noted Maryland Gov Wes Moore who broadcasted the unveiling of the Maryland Benefits One application during a visit to the United Communities Against Poverty in Capitol Heights But here s what society does We ask them to keep on reminding us about your situation We ask them to keep on reminding us about your financial distress tell us about your poverty over and over and over again Tell us Remind us Remind yourself he added Moore revealed there s a double standard when it comes to the tactics federal and state governments bend over backward to encouragement the wealthy versus how those who are living in poverty are being requested to bend over backward Harley fought back against critics of welfare programs saying numerous recipients genuinely need help and aren t gaming the system People who really need them are not lazy they re not incompetent they just need the help And a lot of times it s challenging for people to get the services that they really need she narrated WTOP In the long-term the state hopes to let assistance recipients handle more of the administrative efforts needed to apply for and maintain assistance through that same portal The Maryland Benefits platform used to be known as MD THINK The new application has been live for about two weeks and Moore declared residents have already filled it out And he mentioned the state has slashed the amount of time it takes to fill out those applications We have cut down the average application time by nearly a full hour from minutes for SNAP alone to minutes for all benefits all at once Moore mentioned Harley is one of those people who applied through the new system and revealed it much easier to use Oh so much faster I did it allegedly in less than a half hour Source