More than 220,000 Alabamians are caught in the state’s health coverage gap, earning too much to qualify for Medicaid and too little to afford private insurance.
Another 120,000 Alabamians are stretching to pay for coverage they can’t afford.
Tens of thousands of Alabamians in the coverage gap are between jobs or are working in essential, low-paying fields like child care, construction and food service.
13,000 Alabama veterans and adult family members have no military insurance and can’t afford private plans.
Nearly 65,000 rural Alabamians are caught in the coverage gap.
Eight rural Alabama hospitals have closed since 2011.
88% of the state’s rural hospitals operate at a loss.
Alabama’s ‘bare bones’ Medicaid leaves out more than 340,000 people
A family of three with countable income of just $3,841 a year earns too much for the parents to get Medicaid coverage.
As we’ve seen, Alabama Medicaid serves mostly children and people with special health care needs. Only Texas makes it harder for working-age adults without a disability to get Medicaid. First, you have to be a parent of a dependent child. Second, you can’t earn more than 18% of the federal poverty level.
Because of our state’s stringent limits, about 223,000 Alabamians are caught in the coverage gap. Working low-wage jobs that often don’t offer health insurance, they earn too much to qualify for Medicaid and too little to afford private insurance. Some are caught because they’re family caregivers, students, waiting for a disability determination, or working part-time. About 120,000 more are stretching to pay for coverage they can’t afford.
Alabama’s working families need health security
They’re the folks who keep things going — the people who serve our food at restaurants, bag our groceries, patch our roofs and repair our cars. They work hard at economically essential jobs that pay low wages. Yet many of these Alabamians have no affordable health coverage option. As a result, they often struggle to work while dealing with health problems that sap their productivity, add stress to their households and worsen without timely care.
IN FOCUS
Working Alabamians in the gap
They earn too much to qualify for Medicaid, and they can’t afford employer-based coverage or private insurance. Medicaid expansion would make life better for Alabama’s low-wage workers and strengthen our state’s workforce.
Source: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities analysis of U.S. Census Bureau American Community Surveys, 2013-17
Alabamians who aren’t formally employed need coverage, too
While it’s helpful to highlight the workers in the coverage gap, it’s equally important not to overlook people who don’t hold formal jobs. There are many reasons people in the coverage gap may not be working a regular job. Health coverage is a work support that helps people gain and maintain employment.
SPOTLIGHT
Meet Kenneth Tyrone King
Like thousands of his fellow Alabamians, Kenneth Tyrone King of Birmingham works without health insurance, doing his best to keep chronic health problems under control. (Photo: Julie Bennett)
Kenneth Tyrone King is an “underemployed” resident of Birmingham, where he lives with his wife and daughter. He chooses the term “underemployed” carefully, as a testament to the difficulty of finding and keeping work in the face of chronic health challenges, including an irregular heartbeat. Volunteer work and community advocacy, including service on the Alabama Arise board, give him a sense of connection and purpose, but they don’t pay the bills.
“Most of the jobs I have are temporary,” he says. “And if they do sustain longer-term, they sometimes just end.”
Kenneth isn’t able to obtain health insurance because the work he can get doesn’t provide it. And he can’t afford coverage through the Marketplace.
“I’m thinking about longevity in life and being here for my daughter and my wife,” Kenneth says. “Hopefully, if I can get employment that would have health benefits, that would offset my concerns about my health overall.”
IN FOCUS
Veterans in the health coverage gap
It’s a common misconception that people who serve in the U.S. military automatically receive lifetime eligibility for health coverage and other benefits. In reality, veterans’ health benefits depend on their length of service, military classification, type of discharge and other factors. Treatment for service-connected conditions has no time-of-service requirement, but other health benefits do.
Active-duty service members and their families receive health coverage through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Most also receive “bridge” health insurance coverage in the 180 days before and after their active-duty service. But many Alabama veterans — including many National Guard and Reserve members — return home without military health care for the long term. For the 13,000 Alabama veterans and adult family members who have no military health insurance and can’t afford private plans, the consequences can be dire.
Returning to civilian life can be challenging enough without the added burden of being uninsured. Alabama can show its respect for veterans by giving them the health security they need.
IN FOCUS
Rural Alabamians in the health coverage gap
Almost 65,000 rural Alabamians are caught in the health coverage gap, including nearly 4,000 farmers and farm workers. Inadequate health care funding is fraying Alabama’s rural hospital network.
“Rural hospitals in states that increased Medicaid eligibility and enrollment experienced fewer closures,” a 2018 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found. Alabama has lost obstetrical services in 29 counties since 1980. Expanding health coverage would protect Alabama’s rural families, hospitals and communities.
Medicaid Matters (Main Section)How does Medicaid work in Alabama? (Section 1)How is Medicaid improving coverage? (Section 2)How can we make Alabama healthier? (Section 4)
Medicaid expansion would help hundreds of thousands of Alabamians get the health care they need.
States that have expanded Medicaid have seen improvements in infant and maternal mortality and greater access to treatment for mental illness and substance use disorders.
Extending coverage would reduce Alabama’s racial health disparities.
Medicaid expansion would generate billions of dollars in economic activity and hundreds of millions of dollars in new tax revenues.
Expanding health coverage would boost efforts to make Alabama’s prison system more humane, restorative and cost-effective.
Medicaid expansion could save hundreds of lives in Alabama every year.
Closing the coverage gap would improve lives
Hundreds of thousands of Alabamians could get the health care they need to survive and thrive if Alabama raised the income limit for Medicaid and allowed coverage for adults who aren’t parents. Medicaid expansion improves lives across a range of health measures, a growing body of research shows. Those areas include better birth outcomes and maternal health, lower overdose rates and improved mental health. Expansion also would increase household financial security and reduce racial health disparities.
Extending coverage would keep Alabamians healthier
Evidence from Medicaid expansion states shows that providing women continuous health coverage before, during and after pregnancy would make a life-saving difference for mothers and babies.
Extending Medicaid coverage to adults with low incomes would extend the benefits of ongoing Medicaid reforms to hundreds of thousands more Alabamians. This improvement would give us the tools we need to address the state’s chronic health challenges, making families and our workforce healthier in the process.
Research shows that Medicaid expansion increases access to treatment for substance use disorders and significantly strengthens responses to the opioid epidemic.
Medicaid expansion would promote racial equity
Alabama’s shameful legacy of segregation and racial discrimination has driven racial health disparities that continue today. Nearly half of uninsured Alabamians with low incomes are people of color, even though people of color make up just one-third of the state’s population. Medicaid expansion would reduce that coverage disparity and increase economic and health security for Alabamians of all racial and ethnic backgrounds.
Medicaid expansion would boost Alabama’s economy and budgets
In the first four years of Alabama’s Medicaid expansion, the federal government would spend $6.7 billion for new health coverage in our state. This direct investment would yield:
Covering adults with low incomes also would save $316 million in current state health program costs. With all these gains, the net cost to the state would be:
IN FOCUS
Medicaid expansion would support prison reform in Alabama
In 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice put Alabama on notice that prison violence and overcrowding will trigger federal intervention if we don’t get the problems under control. Medicaid expansion would make our corrections system more humane, restorative and cost-effective in three ways:
Untreated mental illnesses and substance use disorders are major contributors to over-incarceration in Alabama. By strengthening support for these services, Medicaid expansion would reduce recidivism and help more people stay out of the criminal justice system in the first place.
When a person leaves prison, it’s hard to get a job that offers health coverage. But to get and keep a job, you need to be healthy. Medicaid expansion would provide former inmates the health security they need to join and remain in the workforce.
Federal funding would cover 90% of the cost of expansion. That would slash state costs for hospitalizing prisoners and free up funds for other needed investments in the corrections system.
Medicaid expansion’s biggest win: saving lives
Across the country, Medicaid expansion saved the lives of at least 19,200 Americans aged 55 to 64 over the four-year period from 2014 to 2017. During the same period, 768 older Alabamians with low incomes lost their lives because they lacked health insurance. (Source: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2019)
If all states expanded Medicaid, the lives saved each year among older adults would nearly equal those of all ages saved by seatbelts.
SPOTLIGHT
Meet Formeeca Tripp
Formeeca Tripp of Auburn knows firsthand the tough decisions that come with living and working in the coverage gap. (Photo: Julie Bennett)
Formeeca Tripp watched her parents struggle with diabetes and heart disease. She has made efforts to follow a new path. But it hasn’t been easy.
“I have been conditioned to put my health on pause to make sure my children are up to date with all of their health care and mental health needs,” she says.
Formeeca lives in Auburn and is the mother of two children, one of whom was diagnosed with autism. She works full-time as a behavior specialist and part-time as an Uber driver to provide them both with medication they need, sometimes at a great cost to herself. For a long stretch, she fell into the coverage gap. With all her “extra” money spent on her children’s health care needs, Formeeca found herself reporting to work with ailments such as tooth infections and pink eye.
Recently, she gained coverage through her employer’s plan, but many people she knows are not so fortunate. Speaking from her own experience, Formeeca says Alabamians who can’t afford health insurance often work in public-facing jobs.
“It’s the people who are working with the sick and elderly, working with your babies,” she said. “It’s us, out here, hands on, making food, cleaning houses — it’s that gap of people, very important people. People who come into contact with thousands of other people. And you don’t want them to be healthy?”
Medicaid Matters (Main Section)How does Medicaid work in Alabama? (Section 1)How is Medicaid improving coverage? (Section 2)Who’s still left out of health coverage? (Section 3)
Arise’s report, Medicaid Matters: Charting the Course to a Healthier Alabama, illustrates why Medicaid expansion is so critical for the state at this moment in history. Through data, colorful graphics and personal profiles, the report explores Medicaid’s crucial role in Alabama’s health care system. And it reveals how Medicaid expansion would promote racial equity and leave communities better equipped to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Expanding Medicaid would save thousands of lives, create tens of thousands of jobs and help hospitals and clinics across Alabama,” Alabama Arise policy director Jim Carnes said. “As our state continues to struggle with COVID-19, it’s more important than ever for the governor and lawmakers to step up and prove they value the health and well-being of all of our residents.”
Medicaid is a health care lifeline for one in four Alabamians and an economic engine for the entire state. Medicaid Matters explains the Medicaid coverage available to more than 1 million children, seniors, and people with disabilities in Alabama. It highlights improvements that new Medicaid changes are promoting in key areas like infant mortality, obesity and substance use disorders. And it shines a spotlight on more than 340,000 uninsured and underinsured Alabamians who would be covered under Medicaid expansion.
Medicaid expansion would save and transform lives across Alabama
So far, 36 states – including Arkansas, Kentucky and Louisiana – have expanded Medicaid to cover adults with low incomes. But Alabama is one of just 14 states that have not. That remains the case even though the state would get $9 in federal money for every $1 of state funding.
Medicaid expansion would bring peace of mind to thousands of Alabamians who recently lost their jobs and health insurance. And it would make life better for many uninsured people who are working on the front lines of the pandemic. This includes workers at grocery stores, hospitals, child care facilities and other essential businesses.
Formeeca Tripp, a behavior specialist who lives in Auburn, explains in Arise’s report how the health of any Alabamian is linked to the health of every Alabamian.
Formeeca Tripp of Auburn knows firsthand the tough decisions that come with living and working in the coverage gap. (Photo: Julie Bennett)
“It’s the people who are working with the sick and elderly, working with your babies,” Tripp said. “It’s us, out here, hands on, making food, cleaning houses – it’s that gap of people, very important people. People who come into contact with thousands of other people. And you don’t want them to be healthy?”
Arise’s statewide online summer listening sessions are a chance to hear what’s happening on key state policy issues and share your vision for our 2021 policy agenda. Register now to help identify emerging issues and inform our work to build a better Alabama.
We’d love to see you at any or all of these sessions! Registration is required, so please register at the link under each description.
June 23rd, 6 p.m. –Money talks
How can we strengthen education, health care, child care and other services that help Alabamians make ends meet? And how can we fund those services more equitably? Click here to register for this session.
Alabama is struggling. Even after Governor Ivey issued an emergency stay-at-home order, the average number of new coronavirus cases continues to rise. And despite those climbing case numbers, Alabama is moving forward with reopening its economy. To accomplish a successful recovery, residents must have confidence that it is safe to be in public and workers must be able to work in safe environments without fear for their health or the health and safety of their families. We are asking that you support the following recommendations so that Alabama will use the $1.9 billion under the Coronavirus Relief Fund to heal and protect the communities who have and will continue to shoulder the high costs of this crisis.
The Alabama Legislature, in consultation with Governor Ivey, has divided these federal funds into large categories of spending. Governor Ivey now has provided a method by which you and your colleagues may request release of the funds for coronavirus-related expenditures.
We recognize that $1.9 billion is inadequate to address the long-term needs of Alabamians as the present economic crisis continues to unfold. Consequently, you and your colleagues will need to find additional revenue sources to ensure that Alabama’s economy does not weaken further and that its residents are sufficiently protected from future spikes in infections. We look forward to working with you on those longer discussions.
Our recommendations aim to provide support where it is most needed, reflecting the disparate impact of the crisis. Highly educated workers have largely been able to work from home. Low-wage and many essential workers have not. Unemployment rates are highest for workers who have less than a bachelor’s degree and are higher in our Latinx and Black communities. We have also seen the largest gender gap in unemployment, where women experience unemployment at a nearly 3% higher rate than men. Our response to the pandemic and our use of the Coronavirus Relief Funds need to heal this harm, not exacerbate the disparities that already exist.
However the taxpayer-funded payments are distributed, they must be openly accounted with reasonable but sufficient detail. In addition to public reporting of expenditures, the Department of Examiners of Public Accounts must be authorized to audit receipts and expenditures of all agencies within its purview and to request accounting from other CARES Act funding recipients.
Ensuring safe workplaces and families
As Florida and Georgia have shown, merely reopening the economy does not bring back customers or jobs. Both states have seen ongoing unemployment claims at rates higher than other states in the nation. Alabama must ensure that workplaces are safe, that workers’ families are cared for, and that state and local services are ready for people to come back before the more than 500,000 newly unemployed can return to work. These recommendations focus mostly on needs that can be met with the $300 million earmarked for supporting businesses, nonprofits, and faith-based organizations.
Working
Working outside the home brings with it the very real risk that you will become infected. The primary concern of many workers is that they will become infected on the job and, in turn, infect their family.
To make work safe, we must fund testing and contact tracing, provide protective and sanitary equipment, and create new workspaces that minimize the possibility of transmission.
High-risk and essential workplaces, such as poultry plants, warehouses, grocery stores, child care centers, nursing homes and hospitals, require repeated and random testing for workers who do not appear ill, immediate testing of anyone who has symptoms of the novel coronavirus, and contact tracing for employees, their families, and the public who have come in contact with an employee who has tested positive.
Alabama should use a portion of the $300 million earmarked for the support of citizens, businesses, nonprofits, and faith-based organizations directly impacted by the pandemic or providing assistance to those affected to provide:
The tests necessary for business and government agencies that have reopened;
Contact tracing of positive test results;
Personal protective equipment for employees of those business and government agencies; and
Increased sanitary stations within essential workplaces.
Alabama also needs to develop or adopt technical assistance on workplace safety detailing how employers test for COVID-19, use PPE, and create safer workspaces.
In exchange for providing these supplies and equipment, Alabama must require businesses to adopt paid sick leave requirements for all employees to protect other employees and the public from transmission of the virus and allow employees to get tested without fear of losing their jobs.
When allocating these funds, Alabama should prioritize supporting minority-owned and woman-owned local businesses and provide small business loans or grants to these businesses to retain employees or make workplaces safer. Minority-owned businesses received fewer Small Business Administration loans under the CARES Act, and because the business owners have less access to credit, they rely on personal funds more than white-owned businesses to finance their work.[1]
In addition, Alabama should follow Congress’ example and provide a one-time tax rebate to low-income households to assist families who are unemployed and underemployed.
Families
One of the largest hurdles for families who are prepared to go to work is finding affordable and safe child care. Approximately one in four working adults has a child under age 18 and in two-thirds of two-parent families with children, both parents work. However, not every family can afford child care. Low-income families who pay for child care spend around 35% of their income on that care. To ensure parents are able to return to work, Alabama needs to provide child care for low-income families. This includes supporting low-income families by making child care affordable and supporting child care centers that are at risk of closing.
Stable families need stable homes. While Governor Ivey’s April 3 proclamation alleviated the immediate threat of eviction and foreclosure, it does not solve the long-term problem for Alabamians unable to pay rent or mortgages now that the emergency order has expired. Many families will not be able to pay the back rent that has accumulated. About a third of low-income and nearly two-thirds of extremely low-income households in Alabama pay more than half of their income on rent and utilities every month. The total cost of rent support needed in Alabama for the duration of this crisis is estimated at a little over $1 billion.[2]
These families and their landlords urgently need rent relief. To meet this significant need, Alabama must:
Allocate and leverage Coronavirus Relief Fund money in coordination with other sources of federal and private housing assistance funds; and
Provide emergency relief, through homeless and other nonprofit agencies, for families at risk of eviction, foreclosure or loss of utility service.
Other states have already taken this important step. Montana used $50 million of the Coronavirus Relief Funds it received to provide tenant and homeowner relief. The Pennsylvania Legislature reserved $150 million for emergency rental assistance from its federal funding. Likewise, Illinois allocated $396 million of its funds for housing assistance. It reserved $100 million specifically to meet the needs of people in disproportionately impacted areas based on COVID-19 cases and $79 million for counties that did not receive direct allotments from the federal Coronavirus Relief Funds. Alabama needs to take similar steps to protect its families who rent.
These solutions do not address the overwhelming need for more affordable housing in Alabama. To address this long-term goal, Alabama needs to increase its stock of affordable housing by funding the Housing Trust Fund administered by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs.
As more Alabama families lose jobs or work hours, hunger is growing in the state. In the last week of May, the Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey found that over 10% of Alabama households are experiencing food insecurity–a significant increase from the first week of the crisis. Therefore, we must greatly increase our support to Alabama-based food banks that provide emergency food to hungry families.
Improving Alabama’s health
COVID-19 is exposing chronic and deadly inequities in Alabama’s health care system. The virus’s disproportionately high mortality rate for African Americans reflects deep structural barriers to health care, economic opportunity, transportation, and other assets of the common good. These same barriers have impeded the state’s response to the pandemic by limiting the delivery system for mitigation, testing, and treatment in historically underserved communities. In light of these challenges borne of both active exclusion and passive neglect, Alabama’s COVID-19 response should prioritize interventions that explicitly address health disparities.
Allocation of federal COVID-19 relief funds does not occur in a vacuum. These funds will have their biggest impact when they flow through or alongside state programs designed to provide basic protections for all Alabamians. The single biggest action Alabama can take to maximize the impact of current and future federal COVID-19 relief funding on historic health disparities in our state is to expand Medicaid. Lack of health coverage for low-income adults creates an “outsider class,” distancing many of our most vulnerable neighbors from emergency resources that could buffer the pandemic’s toll. We recognize that the state cannot use COVID-19 relief funding for the state share of expansion costs.
Thus far, Alabama has set aside $5 million to support the Department of Health and an additional $250 million to support delivery of health care and related services related to the pandemic. Alabama should use these funds to:
Ensure that there is adequate testing for new infections, including funding for testing supplies;
Provide contact tracing after new infections are discovered;
Supply PPE to areas that have been most impacted by COVID-19; and
Strengthen public health surveillance systems to facilitate rapid response to local infection upsurges as economic activity increases.
Adequate testing for the virus is the most urgent tactical need. A primary tool for targeting finite (and admittedly inadequate) resources is accurate information. The state must evaluate the extent and adequacy of testing in each Public Health District in order to prioritize additional resources for underserved districts and facilitate partnerships between local health departments, private testing providers and local community and faith groups to ensure assistance for all who need it.
Another barrier to both testing and treatment is lack of transportation, especially in rural areas. To address this concern, Alabama should appropriate a portion of COVID-19 relief funds to the Public Transportation Trust Fund to mitigate coronavirus-related drops in local agencies’ farebox recovery rates.
Safely reopening state and local services
Reopening our courts
The Alabama Supreme Court has authorized the presiding circuit judge in each circuit to continue court closures until August 15 for all courts within the circuit, including municipal courts, to preserve the safety and welfare of court personnel and the public. We would encourage delaying non-essential hearings for as long as possible, so long as the delays do not affect the rights of litigants. However, when courts reopen, they will need to take special precautions to protect people with disabilities or with family members who are vulnerable to infection. Funding to courts should require that they develop, and make accessible, a comprehensive reasonable accommodation policy for civil and criminal cases that addresses the individual needs of lawyers, litigants, defendants, and witnesses who cannot physically come to court due to disability.
These accommodations could be as simple as continuances or remote video proceedings for people who have access to technology necessary to participate in the proceedings remotely. If remote proceedings are used, funding should be used to allow for technology that permits video to enhance credibility determinations by fact finders, that allows the introduction and viewing of documentary evidence by remote participants, and that provides access, or education about the requisite technology for participants prior to their hearing.
Alabama also should increase funding to support ADA coordinators within courts that individuals with disabilities can contact in the event that an accommodation is needed.
In addition to delaying court reopenings and taking necessary steps to protect people with disabilities, a portion of the $10 million set aside for court services should fund personal protective equipment for all people required to attend court functions, including court personnel, attorneys, witnesses, victims, and litigants. Additionally, a portion of those same funds should be used to promptly notify individuals with court dates of delays, cancellations, and rescheduled hearings. Not only should these notices be sent to individuals, but as the hours and operating conditions of the courts evolve and change, the court should ensure that the public is aware of current court policies and how people seeking emergency relief may access the courts. These notices should be prominently posted at the courthouse, online, and in any other location likely to inform the public.
Improving state services
The pandemic caused a groundswell of need for services administered by Alabama, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Medicaid, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Unemployment Insurance benefits, and subsidized housing programs (which are primarily run at a local level). As more residents need these supports to make it through the pandemic, Alabama should prioritize the $300 million it has set aside for state agencies to increase the numbers of case handlers they employ to respond to the increased demand, provide those workers with resources they need to work from home or with the same testing and PPE that we recommend for all essential workers when they engage with the public, and collectively improve access to their services using mobile technology.
When an individual is going through a crisis or the entire state is in a pandemic, these disparate services need to be accessible in one place with minimal barriers to applying for benefits, receiving important correspondence about deadlines or reporting obligations, and communicating with case workers about the services. Applying and maintaining these services comes at a high opportunity cost to families. Currently, to apply for and communicate about each service takes hours, often at different agencies and with different case workers. That is time that people need to take care of their children, their elderly parents or neighbors, or to look for employment. Improving capacity and access now both responds to the current crisis and inoculates these agencies for future crises.
Voting
In addition to improving access to state services, Alabama must protect our citizens’ health and fundamental right to vote. A portion of the $300 million set aside for state services should be used to provide absentee ballot applications to every registered voter or, at a minimum, allow every registered voter to request and vote by absentee ballot during the pandemic. In addition, because many voters require or prefer in-person voting, the state must work to improve the safety and accessibility of in-person voting and permit curbside voting. To ensure voters know how to vote safely during the COVID-19 pandemic, Alabama will need to increase its spending to educate voters in coordination with local election officials.
Taking responsibility for people in our custody
Alabama has both a legal and a moral responsibility for the safety and well-being of the people it incarcerates. There are tens of thousands of individuals housed in state prisons, local jails, and ICE detention facilities — all places where it is impossible to practice social distancing. To date, less than 1% of those incarcerated in Alabama’s prisons have been tested for COVID-19.
Governor Ivey with approval from the Legislature has set aside $200 million for the Department of Corrections to help meet Alabama’s moral and legal obligations during this pandemic. We recommend that Alabama prioritize its use of the funds to:
Release all incarcerated people who do not pose a threat to public safety, who are pregnant, and people who are at a higher risk if infected with COVID-19;
Assist with reentry services to enable successful reintegration for returning persons;
Test people in Alabama jails and prisons prior to release and while incarcerated; and
Provide PPE, soap, sanitizer, and other supplies necessary to maintain a safe and hygienic environment for the remaining incarcerated people and correctional staff.
The fastest way to reduce the threat of infection in jails and prisons is to test and release as many people as possible to reduce the number of people within the facilities. However, decarceration requires more than releasing someone from jail or prison. We also must prioritize a successful reentry into communities to prevent recidivism. A portion of the funds allocated for the Department of Corrections must go to increasing reentry services to ensure successful and safe transitions into the community. Particularly important to this transition are ensuring that people are tested for the coronavirus before reentering and that they are provided with the housing, employment, and medical services necessary once they are in the community. Some states have reduced their populations by nearly 20%. Alabama must do more.
In addition to expediting reentry and funding reentry services, Alabama needs to ensure that people are not set up to fail with onerous fines and fees used to fund the criminal justice system and reentry monitoring. Unemployment is already at record highs, and we know that the effects of racial bias in the hiring process increase the already negative effects of criminal records for people of color. Studies have shown that Black applicants with a criminal record had only a 5% chance of receiving a call back, less than one-third of white applicants with a criminal record. Reentering into this economy will be tough. Having paid for reentry with federal funds, Alabama should waive the fines and fees for people who are struggling to reintegrate into our communities, giving them a clean start and a better chance for success.
Even with fewer people in facilities, we will still need to dramatically increase testing of employees who work in prisons and jails and for the people who are incarcerated therein. Only four in every 100 residents in Alabama have been tested for COVID-19. Alabama has tested fewer than 1% of people incarcerated in its prisons. This is wholly inadequate to slow, let alone stop, the spread of COVID-19 within Alabama’s facilities.
Securing our children’s futures
The pandemic radically impacted education and threatens to worsen future education outcomes in Alabama for the many students who already did not have the benefit of an equitable opportunity to learn before it began. Alabama must focus its attention on addressing the inequities exacerbated by access to technology, space to learn, and caretakers to support their learning and those for whom specialized services are not available, including for students with disabilities. If it does not, the opportunity gap will widen with significant economic impacts for students and their families far into the future.
The opportunity gap experienced by low-income children and children of color begins early in life. We must intervene and use a portion of the dedicated $300 million for expenditures related to technology and infrastructure for remote instruction and learning to provide support to organizations offering early intervention programs for at-risk children so that these services can be provided safely and, as necessary, remotely.
Alabama also should prioritize the use of the $300 million to fund public schools with the highest proportion of students who are low-income children, children of color, children with disabilities, English-language learner children, children in immigrant families, children in foster care, migrant children, children experiencing homelessness, LGBTQ children, and children in the juvenile justice system. Public schools likely will need to hire additional staff, including counselors, to provide necessary education, social and emotional, and health and safety services and increase salaries to remain competitive for educators who now take greater risks to their own health and are required to master more technological skills to teach their kids.
We recognize that the $300 million allocated by the Legislature will not be enough. Additional funding could also be taken from the $250 million fund for local government expenditures directly related to the pandemic to provide these disproportionately affected school systems and their local communities with funding for after-school, summer school, and community programs for youth.
Finally, where there are competing priorities for funding, the Legislature has set aside an additional $118 million that can be used to supplement the funds required for these recommendations. If you have any questions or concerns about any of these recommendations, please contact Robyn Hyden (Robyn@alarise.org or 334-832-9060) or Katie Glenn (katie.glenn@splcenter.org or 334-531-7638).
Signatories
Sincerely,
90 Alabama organizations
ACLU of Alabama
Adelante Alabama Worker Center
AIDS Alabama
AL CURE
Alabama Appleseed
Alabama Arise
Alabama Black Women’s Roundtable
Alabama Civic Engagement Coalition
Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice
Alabama Coalition on Black Civic Participation
Alabama Faith Council
Alabama Institute for Social Justice
Alabama Justice Initiative
Alabama NAACP
Alabama Poor People’s Campaign
Alabama Rivers Alliance
Alabama Solutions, A Grassroots Movement
Alabama Youth and College NAACP
Amalgamated Transit Union Local 770
Auburn Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
Baptist Church of the Covenant
Bay Area Women Coalition, Inc.
Beloved Community Church
Birmingham AIDS Outreach (BAO)
Children First Foundation, Inc.
Christian Church in Alabama-Northwest Florida
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
Church of the Reconciler, UMC (Birmingham)
Church Women United Montgomery
Citizens’ Climate Lobby – Baldwin County, Alabama Chapter
Collaborative Solutions, Inc.
Etowah Visitation Project
Fairhope Unitarian Fellowship
Faith and Works Statewide Civic Engagement Collective
Faith in Action Alabama
Fall Injury Prevention And Rehabilitation Center
First Christian Church – Disciples of Christ (Montgomery)
First Congregational Church, UCC (Birmingham)
Five Horizons Health Services
GASP
Greater Birmingham Ministries
Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama
Holiday Transitional Center
Holy Rosary Catholic Church
Human Rights Campaign Alabama
Humanists of North Alabama
Immanuel Presbyterian Church, PCUSA (Montgomery)
Interfaith Montgomery
Jesuit Social Research Institute
Jobs to Move America
Just Faith, Prince of Peace Catholic Church (Birmingham)
Just Faith, Our Lady of the Valley Catholic Church (Birmingham)
League of Women Voters of Alabama
Low Income Housing Coalition of Alabama
Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church (Daphne)
March of Dimes
Mary’s House Catholic Worker
Medical Advocacy & Outreach
Mission Possible Community Services, Inc.
Monte Sano United Methodist Church
Montevallo Progressive Alliance
Montgomery Pride United
National Action Network – Birmingham Chapter
National Lawyers Guild
National MS Society
Nightingale Clinic
North Alabama Conference United Methodist Women
North Alabama Peace Network
Open Table United Church of Christ
People First of Alabama
Planned Parenthood Southeast
Progressive Women of Northeast Alabama
Project Hope to Abolish the Death Penalty
Restorative Strategies, LLC
Saint Junia United Methodist Church
Shelby Roden, Attorneys at Law
Sierra Club, Alabama Chapter
Sisters of Mercy Alabama
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas
Southern AIDS Coalition
SPLC Action Fund
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (Birmingham)
The Empowerment Alliance
The Green Kitchen
The Right Place, Inc.
The Women’s Fund of Greater Birmingham
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Mobile
URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity
Yellowhammer Fund
Youth Towers
YWCA Central Alabama
The monument stood in Birmingham for decades as a twisted tribute to Alabama’s original sins: slavery and white supremacy. It “honored” a violent rebellion that sought to protect the enslavement of human beings. During segregation and Jim Crow and civil rights protests and into the 21st century, it served as a daily 52-foot-tall reminder of the systemic oppression and persecution of Black Alabamians.
That monument is finally gone now. After protests, the city pulled it down June 1, on a state holiday named for the political leader of the rebellion it commemorated. Removing physical symbols of slavery and segregation is an important step toward healing and recovery, but it’s not enough. We also must tear down prejudices, disparities and injustices that trace their roots to these oppressive and racist practices. To do that, Alabama must enact public policies that undermine white supremacy and promote dignity, equity and justice for everyone.
The need for racial justice
For more than 30 years, Alabama Arise has worked to make life better for struggling Alabamians through better public policy. It’s impossible to do that work effectively without acknowledging and challenging our state’s historical and ongoing racial inequities. There can be no economic or social justice without racial justice. And as scholar Ibram X. Kendi said, policy cannot be merely non-racist; it must be anti-racist. That’s why we’re committed to placing racial equity and inclusion at the core of our work.
Black Alabamians have battled generation after generation of discriminatory barriers to education, jobs, housing and voting. Compounding those barriers is a criminal justice system that polices Black people more heavily, arrests them more often and condemns them to harsher sentences in dangerously overcrowded prisons and jails.
For centuries, Black people have suffered from police brutality and unequal treatment from law enforcement. This history has fueled protests across the country and around the world over the last week. Arise stands in solidarity with calls to stop killing Black people and start building a world that’s safe for everyone.
All of these systemic failures have added together to produce a series of terrible, ongoing disparities. Black people in our state face higher rates of poverty and hunger, lower life expectancies and lower rates of employment and health insurance coverage.
Policy changes to break down harmful barriers
These are institutional failures that require policy solutions. Here a few ways lawmakers can help break down barriers to opportunity and justice:
Expand Medicaid to cover adults with low incomes. Expansion would ensure health coverage for more than 340,000 Alabamians who are uninsured or barely paying for insurance they can’t really afford. It also would attack a fundamental injustice: People of color make up about 34% of our state’s population, but nearly half of all uninsured Alabamians with low incomes are people of color. Lack of affordable health coverage deprives Black people of timely care for cancer, diabetes, heart disease and other serious conditions. As the disproportionately high share of coronavirus deaths among Black Alabamians shows, health care access is literally a matter of life or death.
Invest more in public education. Alabama’s state funding for K-12 and higher education, adjusted for inflation, is lower today than it was in 2008. This chronic underfunding hits many schools that primarily serve Black students especially hard.
Equitably distribute funding for affordable housing and public transportation. Alabama has trust funds for both but hasn’t funded them yet. Lawmakers should fund public transportation to help everyone get to work, school and other places they need to go. Alabama should support the Housing Trust Fund to ensure people living in deep poverty have safe shelter. Our state also should commit to eliminating redlining, fighting housing discrimination and proactively reducing residential segregation.
Overhaul the criminal justice system and the death penalty. Areas with large Black populations often see a larger police presence. The weight of harsh sentences and criminal justice debt falls more heavily on these Alabamians as a result. Lawmakers should reform sentencing laws and ease the crushing burden of exorbitant fines and fees. They also need to end abuses of civil asset forfeiture and eliminate racial injustice in the state’s death penalty system.
Strengthen and expand voting rights. Voting barriers should find no home in the heart of the Civil Rights Movement. Automatic voter registration, no-excuse absentee voting and same-day registration are a few changes that would make voting more accessible. Alabama also should ease barriers to voting rights restoration.
Raise the minimum wage and restore home rule to localities. Alabama is one of only five states with no minimum wage law. Birmingham tried to raise its minimum wage in 2016, but state lawmakers blocked that effort. The Legislature has that power due to the 1901 state constitution, whose authors explicitly said the document aimed to “establish white supremacy in this state.” Alabama should lift constitutional barriers to home rule and allow local governments to make decisions in their own communities.
A better, more inclusive future for Alabama
Undoing the legacies of slavery and segregation in Alabama will require more than reassuring words and vague platitudes. It will require substantive policy changes to break down centuries-old barriers and ensure all Alabamians have a chance to reach their full potential.
Many of these changes – and others not mentioned above – won’t be easy. Some of them may not happen quickly. But we must keep advocating and working toward the day when they will. The road to dignity, equity and justice for all Alabamians remains a long one. But walking together and working together, we can and will reach that destination.
Alabama legislators ended the regular session this week by enacting education and General Fund budgets for 2021. But as the COVID-19 downturn hammers state tax revenues, we fear lawmakers’ optimism surrounding these budgets could be misplaced. Arise’s Carol Gundlach explains why the Legislature likely will return for one or more special sessions later this year to revisit the budgets and address other issues.
Personal stories have power. And we want to hear yours. Arise’s Sherrel Wheeler Stewart talks about the importance of personal stories as we work to convince Alabama lawmakers to expand Medicaid. She also explains how folks who are uninsured or struggling to afford health coverage can share their stories with Arise and the Cover Alabama Coalition.
Life is changing quickly for everyone during the coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency. Protecting yourself and your family from the virus is the first of many concerns. The pandemic also has left many Alabamians worried about food, health care, housing, job security and other basic needs.
Alabama has a safety net of public assistance programs that can help people through hard times. And Alabama Arise wants to help people connect with the help they need. Use this guide to find services that may fit your needs now, even if you weren’t eligible before.
Response efforts are changing rapidly, so check back for updates to this resource guide as new information becomes available. Email info@alarise.org if you have any questions or recommendations for additional resources.
Below is a table of contents covered in this guide. Click on each topic to go to its corresponding section.
Know the major symptoms of COVID-19: cough, fever, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing. Other symptoms may include aches, chills, diarrhea, headache, severe vomiting, sore throat, tiredness or new loss of smell or taste.
If you experience these symptoms, call your doctor first to get advice on testing and care. Free testing is available at state testing sites. Charges may apply at other testing sites.
If you do not have a doctor, call the Alabama COVID-19 Hotline 24/7 at 888-264-2256 for testing sites and hours of operation near you. Note: This hotline does not provide medical advice.
If you are uninsured, you may be able to get free treatment for conditions related to COVID-19. The federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act includes a $100 billion emergency fund for health care providers. “As a condition of receiving funds under this program, providers will be forbidden from balance billing the uninsured for the cost of their care,” the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced. Check with your local hospital or clinic about this.
Prolonged in-home isolation can mask incidents of family abuse and violence, especially toward children, seniors or people with disabilities. People who report abuse or neglect are protected from legal action in response to their reporting.
Members of certain professions are mandatory reporters, meaning they must report suspected or known abuse or neglect. These professions include chiropractors, clergy members, coroners, day care workers or employees, dentists, doctors, law enforcement officials, medical examiners, mental health professionals, nurses, optometrists, osteopaths, pharmacists, podiatrists, social workers and teachers and school officials.
– If you are experiencing domestic violence (that is, if someone in your family or someone you’re in a relationship with is hurting or threatening you), call the Alabama domestic violence hotline at 800-650-6522. This hotline is answered 24/7, and you do not have to give your name to get help.
– To report suspected child abuse or neglect, including failure to seek medical treatment, call your county Department of Human Resources or local law enforcement. Do not email reports of suspected abuse or neglect, as they may not get prompt attention.
– To report elder abuse, call the Adult Abuse Hotline at 800-458-7214.
– To report abuse in an assisted living facility or nursing home, call 800-356-9596.
Other contact numbers to know
– If you need legal help anywhere in Alabama to protect your right to disability services, call the Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program (ADAP) at 205-348-4928 or use the online intake form here.
– If you are a survivor of sexual assault, you can call the sexual assault hotline at 800-656-HOPE (4673). You will be connected with a trained sexual assault service provider in your area.
– If you are experiencing homelessness and need shelter, call 2-1-1 and ask for a list of shelters in your area.
– If you need legal help for a problem related to COVID-19, call Legal Services Alabama at 877-393-2333 or click here.
– To report COVID-19-related price gouging or scams, contact these hotlines:
The Alabama Attorney General’s Consumer Complaint Hotline: 800-392-5658 or 334-242-7335 (8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday).
The National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline: 866-720-5721 or disaster@leo.gov.
Health care and insurance
The risk of COVID-19 exposure, complications and death varies widely by job, age and health condition. That’s why the new vaccines are being offered in phases, with those deemed at highest risk getting the first doses.
As of April 5, 2021, all Alabamians age 16 and older are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Supply shortages have been a major obstacle in Alabama’s vaccination rollout, but new vaccine products and a manufacturing push are improving the outlook. For more information, visit alabamapublichealth.gov.
Important information about the COVID-19 vaccines
Here are some important things to know about the vaccines:
All approved vaccines have been through the full testing process for any U.S. vaccine. They’ve come out more quickly because testing and manufacturing were scaled up for the emergency.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine comes in one dose. The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines come in two doses, several weeks apart. If you get either of those, you will need to get the second dose of the same vaccine you got the first time. The person who gives you your vaccine will explain how to get your follow-up shot.
Your health care provider is your best source of information about the vaccine and how to get it. If you don’t have a regular provider, contact your county health department or a local clinic about how and when to get the vaccine.
The vaccine will be free to everyone. Some providers may charge an administrative fee. If you cannot pay the fee, tell your provider. You can still get the vaccine.
Lots of false information is circulating about the vaccines. Be sure to confirm anything you hear or read with information from a reliable source, such as your health care provider, your county health department or a local clinic.
Vaccines are being distributed as soon as they are available. Because the supply is limited at this stage, it’s important to follow official guidance on which phase is the one for you. In the meantime, continue taking precautions and be patient. Everyone will have the opportunity to get the vaccine.
COVID-19 puts people without health insurance at special risk for delayed care and financial disaster. Federal and state governments are making changes to help people who are uninsured or at risk of losing coverage.
COVID-19 care
If you are uninsured, you may be able to get free treatment for conditions related to COVID-19. The federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act includes a $100 billion emergency fund for health care providers. “As a condition of receiving funds under this program, providers will be forbidden from balance billing the uninsured for the cost of their care,” the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced. Check with your local hospital or clinic about this.
Medicaid
Courtesy of Alabama Medicaid Agency
If you had Medicaid coverage of any kind during March 2020, or if you become eligible later, your coverage will not be terminated for any reason before the crisis has ended, unless you cancel it yourself or move out of Alabama. This includes postpartum coverage for women who recently have given birth. If your case was open in March but has already closed, please be patient. Medicaid will reopen your case very soon.
To help keep your Medicaid from ending after the emergency:
Report any information changes.
Renew your Medicaid at the scheduled time.
If you have Medicaid coverage, you do not have to pay co-pays to the hospital, doctor’s office, pharmacy or for medical equipment and supplies during the coronavirus emergency.
If you are younger than 65 and have lost your job, regular pay or hours in the coronavirus emergency, you have a few options. The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) passed by Congress in March provides new assistance with health coverage:
Through Sept. 30, 2021, people eligible for COBRA continuation coverage after loss of employer-based coverage won’t have to pay any premiums. Note: If you become eligible for a new group plan or Medicare while on COBRA, you must notify your insurer. Failure to do so will result in a cash penalty.
Depending on income level, premiums for Marketplace plans are reduced or eliminated for 2021 and 2022 under ARPA.
Find out if you and your family can get health insurance through Medicaid, ALL Kids or the Marketplace.
To explore your Marketplace coverage options, visit healthcare.gov or call 800-318-2596.
For enrollment assistance, call Enroll Alabama at 844-248-7698 or email enrollalabama@gmail.com.
Alabama has 17 community health centers, with more than 165 locations across the state, that provide comprehensive primary care and preventive services on a sliding fee scale, regardless of patients’ insurance status. Services include:
COVID-19 vaccination
COVID-19 testing
General primary medical care
Diagnostic laboratory and radiology
Preventive screenings
Well check-ups
Dental services
Immunizations
OB-GYN care
Pharmaceutical services
Other services that vary by location (mental health care, optometry, substance use disorder treatment, etc.)
To find the nearest health center, visit Find My Health Center and enter your ZIP code. Or call the Alabama Primary Health Care Association at 888-322-7068 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Some details of operation are changing because of COVID-19, so call your local center before visiting.
Financial assistance for COVID-related funeral expenses
Thousands of Alabama families have lost loved ones to COVID-19. One of the hidden burdens of the pandemic is the cost of funerals. FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, offers financial assistance for COVID-related funeral expenses incurred after Jan. 20, 2020.
Call this dedicated toll-free phone number to get a COVID-19 Funeral Assistance application completed with help from FEMA’s representatives. Multilingual services are available:
COVID-19 Funeral Assistance Line Number
844-684-6333 | TTY: 800-462-7585
Hours of Operation:
Monday – Friday
8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Central Time
Get answers to frequently asked questions about the application process on FEMA’s Funeral Assistance FAQ page
Living with disabilities and mental illness
If you or someone you know lives with a disability or mental illness and needs help during the COVID-19 crisis, use this guide from Disability Rights and Resources to find relevant resources by topic and location.
If you need legal help anywhere in Alabama to protect your right to disability services, call the Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program (ADAP) at 205-348-4928 or use the online intake form here.
Alabama has a network of nonprofit food banks that collect, store and distribute groceries to food pantries, where families can get free food directly. To learn more about food assistance in your area and find a local food pantry, check out the Auburn Justice Center’s food pantry map. Or contact the food bank nearest you:
Alabama’s food banks also operate the Senior Box Program, which provides USDA-donated foods to eligible seniors through a monthly food package. Seniors must be 60 years of age or older and have a household income at or below 130% of the Federal Poverty Level. To apply to receive a Senior Box, a person should call the food bank that serves their area.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
Alabama provides federal food assistance through SNAP (formerly known as food stamps). Monthly SNAP benefits help eligible households with low incomes buy the food they need to maintain good health. Loss of income in the COVID-19 crisis has made many more families eligible for SNAP.
In response, Congress has increased SNAP benefits for eligible families in three important ways. First, families who would normally receive less than the maximum SNAP benefit because of their income had their benefits increased to the maximum benefit for their household size. Second, all SNAP recipients now receive an additional 15% in SNAP assistance. Third, households that did not receive increased benefits because they were already receiving the maximum for their household size became eligible for an additional emergency allocation beginning in April 2021.
Emergency benefits may be distributed on a different day than regular benefits for administrative reasons. Alabama must request emergency benefits on a monthly basis, but this is done routinely. During the pandemic emergency, the extra benefits are expected to continue without interruption.
Women, Infants and Children (WIC) is a supplemental nutrition program for pregnant or breastfeeding women; women who had a baby within the last six months; infants; and children under age 5. To receive WIC benefits in Alabama, an individual or family must meet all of these requirements:
Have a nutritional risk that healthier food could improve.
If you think you may qualify, call your county health department to make an appointment, or call 888-942-4673 for further information. The Alabama WIC Program offers free communication assistance at each clinic location. During the coronavirus emergency, the health department is conducting interviews and nutrition assessments by phone.
If you or your children are approved for WIC, you will be prescribed a specific package of food based on your nutritional assessment. You will receive a debit-like card called an EBT (electronic benefits transfer) card that you can use to purchase food from your personalized food package. Learn more about WIC food options here. Your options will be based on your age and need. Not everyone approved for WIC will be able to get every food item on the list. During the coronavirus emergency, the Department of Public Health is allowing some substitutions if not all the food in your package is available in the grocery store. Your grocer can help you figure out what you can substitute for a WIC food that is unavailable. Congress has also increased the WIC benefit for fruits and vegetables by up to $35 per month for each recipient.
School meals and extension of Summer Food Service Program
The 2020-21 school year began with many uncertainties for classrooms and school cafeterias. Despite detailed USDA guidelines for distributing school meals, child nutrition staff grappled with implementing practical methods to serve meals to incoming students. While some districts opted for on-site learning plans and specified food service procedures, most relied on virtual learning curriculums and grab-and-go meals for remote learners.
Parents and child nutrition staff received relief when Congress extended the Summer Food Service Program through the 2020-21 school year. Extending this program ensures that all school-age children receive school meals at no charge to parents. Elevated COVID-19 rates have forced some school districts to convert to remote or hybrid learning methods and accompanying grab-and-go meal options. Plans continue to vary from district to district and are likely to change in response to local conditions and experiences. To get updates on your school’s nutrition plan, contact your local board of education.
When schools were closed or went to hybrid schedules, millions of children lost access to school meals. In response, Congress created a special program called Pandemic EBT (P-EBT). P-EBT provides children normally eligible for free or reduced priced meals with the same benefits as the National School Lunch Program ($6.82 a day for each child not receiving meals at school, prorated for children attending school on a hybrid schedule). These benefits are delivered to each individual child on a debit-like card issued by the Food Assistance Division of the Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR). Estimates are that more than half a million Alabama children will receive P-EBT for the 2020-21 school year.
No application is required to receive P-EBT benefits. The Alabama State Department of Education will provide eligible children’s information to the Alabama Department of Human Resources. Families who experience a decrease in income may apply for free or reduced-price meals at their child’s school to become eligible for P-EBT.
Each eligible school-aged child will receive a debit-like card on which their benefits will be loaded. Parents should maintain those cards so that they can receive a second round of assistance. P-EBT benefits will remain active and usable for 365 days from the date issued.
Details on P-EBT allotments
The first round of P-EBT will be sent to eligible children by mid-July 2021 and will be retroactive to August 2020. These P-EBT benefits will be issued in two allotments: one covering August to December 2020, and the second covering January to May 2021. The amount of each child’s benefit will be based on whether the child’s assigned school schedule is (1) mostly virtual, (2) mostly in-person or (3) hybrid.
Children attending a mostly virtual school will receive the equivalent of 18 days of benefits for each month that the school operated under a virtual learning plan 50% of the school year. Children attending a hybrid school will receive the equivalent of nine days of benefits for each month that the school operated under a hybrid learning plan. Those children attending a mostly in-person school are not eligible for P-EBT during any month when the school operated mostly in-person. Children whose parents elected to have them attend school virtually will be eligible for the full allotment.
P-EBT card distribution is scheduled to begin in mid-June, but because so many children are eligible to receive a card, it will take until mid-July before all cards are mailed and received by eligible families. DHR’s toll-free customer service hotline for P-EBT questions is 800-410-5827. Parents are encouraged to wait until mid-July to call the hotline about the status of their cards because many cards still will be in the mail before that date. The hotline is available from 7 a.m to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Parents who want to ensure their children’s cards are sent to the right address should check the address on file with their school(s). Parents can correct addresses by calling the hotline after July 15 when the first round of cards has been mailed out.
Further background on P-EBT eligibility
In October, Congress expanded P-EBT to include children under 6 living in a household receiving SNAP food assistance and in a county in which at least one school has operated virtually or in a hybrid model. If at least one school in the county was completely virtual, eligible young children in that county will receive the full P-EBT benefit. If no school in the county was virtual but at least one school in the county had a hybrid model, eligible young children will receive the prorated benefit.
P-EBT for eligible children under 6 will be retroactive to October 2020, when the law creating the benefit was passed, and will be received in two payments later in the summer of 2021. These benefits will be added to the household’s current SNAP EBT card.
Senior nutrition programs
Alabama provides prepared meals for eligible seniors through several programs, some of which have changed their operation during the emergency. Any Alabamian aged 60 or over, or married to someone in that age group, is eligible. People with disabilities who live with an eligible participant or in a living community where the senior nutrition program operates are also eligible.
Meals on Wheels continues to operate in all regions, though some programs have suspended hot meal delivery because of reduced volunteer capacity and other factors. Alabama has received emergency funding to enroll new participants in Meal on Wheels during the pandemic. Click here for a list of Senior Meals Distribution Centers near you.
Beginning April 19, 2021, Senior Centers are allowed to reopen, at their option, but not for on-site serving of congregate meals. Centers that do reopen can allow clients to pick up meals or receive meals through home delivery. Participants in on-site Senior Center activities may also be provided a take-out meal when they leave the Center.
To find out more about senior nutrition programs and Senior Centers near you, contact your regional Area Agency on Aging. (See the list and contact info below.) Office closures and other challenges may require you to leave a message.
The state has stopped penalizing employers for higher employee use of UI benefits. If you’re laid off, make sure your employer knows its UI costs won’t rise if you file a claim. This removes the incentive to dispute it.
Alabama provides 14 to 20 weeks of basic UI compensation. Five more weeks are available for people in job training programs, which face an uncertain status during the pandemic.
Compensation ranges from $45 to $275 weekly.
Payments equal 1/26 of the wages you earned in the two highest quarters, up to the weekly limit of $275.
The federal government provides a $300 weekly supplement to Alabama UI claims through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). You do not need to file any additional paperwork beyond your UI claim to receive the federal supplement.
If you lose your job or hours and need to file or reopen a claim, follow the steps here or call 866-234-5382 (select option 2). Note: Filing a claim requires patience. The website is complicated, and current call volume is high.
Some people in the labor force do not qualify for traditional unemployment insurance (UI) compensation. But many will be covered under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act’s provision for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance. You are federally eligible for PUA if you are ineligible for regular UI compensation and you are out of work or have lost working hours because of COVID-19.
This provision applies to:
Independent contractors who have not participated in the UI system.
Workers who have not earned enough wages to get UI benefits.
Workers who earned wages in too few quarters to qualify for UI benefits.
“Gig workers,” such as rideshare drivers, online sellers and pet-sitters.
The process for filing for PUA is the same as filing a UI claim. ARPA extended PUA eligibility through September 6, 2021.
Eligible people who missed a filing deadline or did not receive the full amount to which they were entitled still can receive the full amount of their relief payments. If this applies to you, claim the Recovery Rebate Credit when filing federal income taxes for the 2020 filing year. The deadline for 2020 returns is May 15, 2021.
If you’re eligible and have a bank account, your payment will be sent there. If you don’t have a bank account, the IRS will send a check or prepaid debit card. Direct deposits usually arrive within one to two weeks if there are no errors in the information provided. Checks and prepaid debit cards often take longer.
Stimulus payments for people who didn’t receive them automatically
The CARES Act created Economic Impact Payments of $1,200 for each eligible adult and $500 for each eligible child. A second round of relief payments of $600 per adult went out early in 2021. And the American Rescue Plan Act, passed in March 2021, will provide $1,400 payments for most Americans. Not everyone who is eligible for these relief payments have received them because they may not earn enough to owe federal taxes and, therefore, don’t file federal income tax returns. Others don’t receive Social Security, veterans’ benefits or other direct federal payments and therefore did not receive relief payments through those agencies.
To receive relief payments, the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit described below, you must file a federal income tax return even if you don’t owe any federal taxes. Information on where you can get help filing income taxes is below.
You must have a Social Security number to receive the payments. But unlike with the first two rounds of relief payments, families with mixed immigration status are eligible for the third round. Anyone who has a Social Security number and is otherwise income-eligible can receive the payment. Children with Social Security numbers can get the payment even if both parents file their taxes with Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers.
Eligible people who missed a filing deadline or did not receive the full amount to which they were entitled still can receive relief payments. If this applies to you, claim the Recovery Rebate Credit when filing federal income taxes for the 2020 filing year. Click here to find out how to make a claim if you have not received your first or second relief payment. If you’re eligible and have a bank account, your payment will go there. If you don’t have a bank account, the IRS will send a check or prepaid debit card.
Relief payments will not count toward eligibility for means-tested programs like Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and public housing.
Important new changes to the Child Tax Credit
Prior to passage of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), some parents received a reduced child tax credit because their earnings — and the taxes they owed on them — were too low. ARPA changes this for one year (2021) by making the child tax credit fully refundable and, therefore, available for families with low earnings or no earnings. It also increases the credit’s maximum amount to $3,600 for children under age 6 and $3,000 for children through age 17.
To receive the child tax credit, parents can file income taxes even if they have too little income to owe taxes orthey can complete the IRS’s Child Tax Credit Non-filer Sign-up Tool if they don’t owe federal taxes and don’t intend to file a tax return. If a person has not received the full amount of the first or second Economic Impact Payment (stimulus), the same form can be used to claim these payments from the IRS.
Important changes to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
The EITC helps low-income, working families with children but has been much less helpful for taxpayers who do not have children in the home. The American Rescue Act changed this by raising the maximum EITC for workers without children to approximately $1,500. It also raises the income cap for adults without children to at least $21,000 and cover working, non-student adults between 19 and 24 and above 65. The expansion of the EITC can provide extra income for working people without children, even if their incomes are too low for them to owe taxes.
Where to get help filing taxes
To receive your relief payment, the EITC and the Child Tax Credit, you will need to file your 2021 federal taxes even if you don’t have enough income to owe any taxes. The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and the Tax Counseling for the Elderly Program (TCE) both offer free help filing your taxes and claiming the tax credits and payments for which you qualify. You can find a VITA site near you here. The AARP Foundation offers both in-person and remote tax filing assistance for anyone, but with a special focus on older and low-income taxpayers.
Help paying for internet and computers
During the pandemic emergency, access to reliable internet has become a necessity for work and for school. Families that are struggling to afford internet services can apply for the federal Emergency Broadband Benefit. This benefit provides a discount up to $50 per month for internet service and a one-time discount of up to $100 for the purchase of a computer or tablet from participating providers.
To be eligible, a family has to have an income below 135% of poverty or receive SNAP, Medicaid or other means-tested benefits or be approved to receive free or reduced-price school meals (including through Community Eligibility) or receive a Pell Grant or have experienced a substantial loss of income during the COVID-19 pandemic. To learn more, to see if your internet provider participates in the program and to apply, visit the FCC’s Emergency Broadband Benefit page.
Help for small and minority farmers
Black, Hispanic and Native American farmers have long suffered discrimination receiving USDA loans and grants. In an effort to begin reparations for this history, the American Rescue Plan included $4 billion in debt relief for Black, Indigenous and people of color farmers who have Farm Services Association loans. To learn more and find out how to apply for this funding, click here.
Help for small businesses
While the Paycheck Protection Program which provided forgivable loans for small businesses has ended, the American Rescue Plan includes several sources of new relief for small businesses, particularly restaurants and entertainment venues. To find out more about these new sources of business assistance click here.
Housing and utilities assistance
Federal and state governments have taken numerous steps to protect people from loss of housing and essential utilities during the COVID-19 emergency.
Eviction moratorium
On Aug. 26, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an unsigned opinion vacating the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) placed a moratorium on evictions for most Americans. This leaves Alabamians without any protections against eviction for inability to pay rent because Gov. Kay Ivey lifted state-level eviction protections June 1, 2020.
Emergency rental assistance funds are being disbursed through several agencies in the state. Check the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s website to determine which agency you should contact to apply for rental assistance in your area. Landlords also can apply for assistance through this program. Having both landlords and tenants apply will help funds be distributed to applicants more quickly. While disbursements have been slow through most of the state, the pace of application processing has increased since July. Applying as soon as you have trouble making rent also will help your application to be processed sooner.
If you have received a notice to vacate, contact Legal Services Alabama immediately at 866-456-4995 (English) or 888-835-3505 (Español). You do not have a legal obligation to move out of your home because of that notice. If you become homeless due to eviction or any other reason, call 2-1-1 for shelter referral and rapid rehousing assistance.
Housing assistance
You also can call 2-1-1 or visit 211connectsalabama.org if you need help paying rental deposits, first month’s rent or a mortgage payment. Ask for a referral to an agency that receives Homeless Prevention and Rapid Rehousing funds. These funds can be used to prevent evictions, help cover the costs of a new rental or cover utility bills that may lead to loss of housing. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) has received $23 million for homelessness assistance and relief. Local nonprofit agencies have received these ADECA funds and can make rent and utility payments for people who are behind.
The Alabama Housing Financing Authority administers a separate fund of $263 million that can help with past due rent and utilities. To find out more and apply for assistance, call 833-620-2434 or click here.
Further, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) added $25 billion nationally to prior amounts appropriated for housing assistance. You may be eligible for assistance for rent, back rent, utility costs and past due utility costs. This provision allows up to 18 months of assistance for households potentially facing homelessness.
If your income is very low and you need help paying rent, the Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR) may be able to help with short-term assistance. You can find your local DHR office here.
If you are in an unstable housing situation, call the Low Income Housing Coalition of Alabama at 205-939-0411.
If your landlord changes locks or cuts off utilities to force you out, call Legal Services Alabama at 866-456-4995.
Keeping your electricity and water services active
No statewide process exists for utility assistance, but some utility payment assistance funds are available through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).
If you need utility bill payment assistance through LIHEAP, contact the Community Action Agency (CAA) serving the county where you live. Find your local CAA here.
The Alabama Housing Financing Authority administers a separate fund of $263 million that can help with past due rent and utilities. To find out more and apply for assistance, call 833-620-2434 or click here.
If you are unable to pay your utility bills, call your utility provider and ask for a deferment.
Additional information
To find other assistance in your area, call the statewide helpline at 2-1-1. This number will connect you to your area’s information and referral system. You also can click here to search for local help online. 2-1-1 is available 24/7 by phone and online to help you find assistance with clothing, employment, food, health care, housing, legal problems and other needs from government and non-government agencies.
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State and federal leaders have taken action to help struggling Alabamians stay healthy and make ends meet amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but they must do more. Arise’s Robyn Hyden gives a video update on the coronavirus’ implications for Medicaid expansion, public health funding, food assistance, unemployment insurance, paid family and medical leave, prisons and jails, and other concerns.
“Rural hospitals in states that increased Medicaid eligibility and enrollment experienced fewer closures,” a 2018 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found. Alabama has lost obstetrical services in 29 counties since 1980. Expanding health coverage would protect Alabama’s rural families, hospitals and communities.
