Mountain State Times

The West Virginia Department of Human Services (DoHS), along with the Bureau for Family Assistance (BFA) and the Office of Inspector General (OIG), has received a grant aimed at enhancing fraud prevention in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The $331,424 grant was awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service.

This funding will facilitate collaboration between BFA and OIG to improve efforts in preventing, detecting, and investigating recipient fraud. The initiative will utilize procedures from the SNAP Fraud Framework, which is designed to help states refine their investigative techniques. Recently, SNAP participants have been affected by benefit theft through EBT card skimming and cloning.

Inspector General Ann Urling commented on the significance of this grant: “This grant is a tremendous opportunity for West Virginia to strengthen the integrity of our SNAP program and improve how we handle fraud prevention and detection.” She emphasized that new tools would aid in managing investigations more efficiently while educating recipients about compliance.

Cynthia Persily, Ph.D., Cabinet Secretary of the West Virginia Department of Human Services, expressed gratitude for the USDA's support: "We are grateful for this grant from the USDA, which will significantly enhance our ability to prevent and detect fraud in the SNAP program here in West Virginia." She highlighted that working with OIG staff would bolster efforts to protect program integrity.

The OIG plans to implement a Case Management and Fraud Reduction system within DoHS programs. This system aims to standardize investigation processes by improving data gathering, automating claims calculations, managing case systems, and preparing evidence packages. Additionally, DoHS will launch an educational program focused on preventing common violations by explaining SNAP fraud and penalties.

West Virginia is among ten states receiving this year's SNAP Fraud Framework Implementation Grant. The funds will support projects aligned with any of the framework's seven components: organizational management, performance measurement, recipient integrity education, fraud detection, investigations and dispositions, analytics and data management, as well as learning and development.

SNAP offers monthly benefits for eligible households to purchase food based on criteria such as household size and income. Applications or changes can be managed via www.wvpath.wv.gov.