By Matt Kinshella
If you are like 211info, callers are constantly asking which social services they qualify for. It is a time consuming process for any social services professional and it can be a hassle or embarrassment for those asking. That’s why Oregon Helps (www.OregonHelps.org) — a website designed to provide Oregonians with quick information about social service eligibility — is so valuable.
Oregon Helps is a free and easy to use web-based self screening tool that asks visitors a few questions about income and expenses. The site then estimates potential eligibility for 33 federal, state and local services—such as food stamps (now known as SNAP), Oregon Health Plan, Medicare and emergency food assistance. It even includes services specific to each of the 36 counties in Oregon. It then provides the visitor with information about how to apply for each of those services. Any information provided is completely confidential and anonymous – the program never even asks for the visitor’s name! Users can take the program in four languages: English, Spanish, Russian and Vietnamese.
Check out the videos (English and Spanish):
Oregon Helps is a great service that every social service professional should utilize and promote. Please send one of the above videos to friends and colleagues, share this blog post or download promotional materials to post in your office.
Can you remember a time when Oregon Helps would have come in handy?
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Great idea and tip! Would be good to put in a word about finding resources on our 211info.org >go to GET HELP in the top bar and SEARCH DIRECTORY. Include using IE for this since other browsers don’t have the ability to narrow by county.