Important Facts You Should Know
- Child care vouchers assist low-income families by ensuring children are properly cared for and parents succeed in their transition to work. Families whose incomes fall below 165% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines can receive payment for all of part of their monthly child care expenses. Eligibility requirements to receive child care vouchers changed. Previously, families living at 185% of the poverty line and lower were eligible. Now, only families at 165% of poverty or lower are eligible for vouchers.
- Approximately 84,000 ofOhio�s children are served by subsidized child care programs each month. (Source: Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services).
- More than 25,000 individuals are served through PASSPORT (at home elderly care) (source: Ohio Department of Aging
- In Ohio , 12,493 seniors with average incomes of about $600 a month receive food boxes. The contents typically include cheese, fruit juice, cereal, pasta, and canned goods. (source: Columbus Dispatch)
- The Ohio Association of Second Harvest Food banks, Ohio�s largest charitable response to hunger have partnered with ODJFS to provide emergency food distribution programs to more than 12 food banks. OASHF represents 12 food banks which distribute food to more than 3,300 member charities. In 2006, OASHF distributed more than 92 million pounds of food and grocery items through the Ohio Food Bank network. More than 1.2 million Ohioans receive food assistance through this network.
- Medicaid provides healthcare coverage for low-income children, pregnant mothers, working families, seniors, and people with disabilities. In 2005, the total number of Ohioans enrolled in Medicaid was 2,038,717. (source: Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services)
- Medicaid was reduced from 100% to 90% of the Federal Poverty Level, which removed 25,000 parents from the Medicaid program. (eligibility for a family of three was reduced from $16,000 annual income to $14,500)
- In 1995 the General Assembly eliminated GA Med altogether and capped enrollment for Disability Medical Assistance. Currently enrollment for Disability Medical Assistance is closed. Low income, uninsured Ohioans without dependents are left out of any assistance to help meet their basic healthcare needs.
