NOVEMBER 23, 2022  

Make the season bright: DHS can keep your holidays happy and healthy

This Thanksgiving, the Department of Human Services (DHS) is grateful for the staff, colleagues, and community partners who help us serve more than 3 million Pennsylvanians every year.

The holidays are a joyous time for gathering with family, friends, and neighbors.

We know, though, that the holiday season can strain resources, As a reminder, if you or someone you know needs help, DHS is here with a variety of programs to make this time of year a little easier.

  Food Assistance  

• Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
  Everyone deserves the dignity and stability of knowing they can put food on the table. SNAP helps Pennsylvanians by providing money each month for groceries. As of October 1, 2022, Pennsylvania increased the income threshold for all applicants to 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines. With this change, more than 420,000 additional Pennsylvanians in more than 174,000 households are newly eligible for SNAP.
   

  Home-Heating Assistance  

• Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
  No one should have their lights or heat turned off during the coldest months of the year. LIHEAP helps individuals and families with low incomes keep their homes safe and warm by helping them pay their heating bills. The 2022-23 LIHEAP season is open now through April 28, 2023. LIHEAP is distributed directly to a household’s utility company or home heating fuel provider. Assistance does not have to be repaid. Last season, LIHEAP helped nearly 330,000 households in Pennsylvania stay warm and safe through the winter.
   

  Health Care  

• Medical Assistance (also known as Medicaid)
• Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
  Cold and flu season is already here, and health coverage is essential to preventing and managing health issues. MA and CHIP help uninsured Pennsylvanians access quality, affordable health coverage, ensuring that they can get necessary routine, preventive, or critical physical and mental health care they deserve. Since the Wolf administration expanded Medicaid eligibility in 2015, more than 2.5 million Pennsylvanians have been able to get health coverage at some point because of Medicaid expansion.
   

  Mental Health  

• Mental Health in PA & 988
  The holidays can be a time for celebration, but they also can be mentally and emotionally difficult for lots of reasons. If you or a loved one need help, call or text 988. When you call or text this number, you will be connected to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, where a trained professional will talk to you about what you are experiencing and how to get help. 988 can be used by anyone at any time for free, whether you are calling for yourself or need help for a loved one. 988 also connects callers to the Veterans Crisis Line and offers services for Spanish speakers.
   

• Applications for public assistance programs can be submitted online through the COMPASS website.
• SNAP and Medicaid applications are accepted by phone by calling the Consumer Service Center at 1-866-550-4355.
• On-site County Assistance Office services are available if clients cannot access online services or need assistance that cannot be accessed through the COMPASS website, the myCOMPASS PA mobile app, or by calling the Customer Service Centers at 215-560-7226 for Philadelphia clients or 1-877-395-8930 for clients in all other counties.

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