The EFAP (Essential Food Assistance Program) is intended to provide food assistance to anyone in need. This will be done by providing a special card that would allow you to go to grocery stores to buy food of nutritional value. You will not be able to buy candy, sodas, or other foods with no nutritional value. This will be determined by the UPC code that is found on every product. This is the bar code on the back of most food packages, and each product has its own UPC code. In the case of butcher meats, a unique code will be provided to determine that it is a nutritional value food.
As the name implies, it is food assistance. This program assumes that you would also be spending some of your money on food, and therefore this gives a hand-up rather than covering for all of your food. There are 2 ways to apply for EFAP, and either method will require a GAON. This is to assure that the appropriate person is applying for their own benefits. If they are a head of the household, then the head of the household (applying for benefits) will need to provide the NIN of everyone in the family. They do not require an GIN! The GAON will authenticate that it is the head of the household applying.
The first option will be to go to HHS’s portal (https://portal.hhs.ka). You would log in with your credentials, go to the social welfare tab, and file for EFAP. The first two things that would be required will the head of the household’s GAON number for EFAP, and the NIN of the head. Once the combination has been accepted, the head will then apply for benefits. If they are applying for a household of more than 1, then the NIN of each individual will be required. This will be used to keep track of who’s on the program. A person can not be applied to have benefits in more than 1 household. In example, a child with divorced parents can not have benefits applied for them with the mother, and the father. It is one or the other. If a second application was made to someone, that second applicant will get denied, and an investigation will be performed on the first household. If the head was determined that they provided a person not in their household, then fraud charges can be issued.
The second option will be to go an HHS office, and apply in person. The in person application is the same as the online one, and the head of the household will still be required to provide an GAON. However, applying in person might mean. results are quicker, and if approved, they can receive their EFAP card immediately. They will need to enter an authorization PIN, and the card will have an EMV chip rather than a magnetic strip. This will make it so much hard for a bad actor to get the EFAP number, and clone a card.