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Public Benefits
Legal Aid protects your access to public benefits, including healthcare, cash assistance, food assistance and disability benefits.
In addition to representing individual clients in public benefits cases, Legal Aid works to improve statewide policies and procedures, making public benefits more accessible to all Northeast Ohioans.
Public Benefits Matters We Handle:
- Medicaid
- Medicare
- Alien Emergency Medical Assistance (AEMA)
- Ohio Works First (OWF-cash assistance)
- Food Stamps
- Childcare Vouchers
- Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)
- Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
- Veteran’s Benefits
FAQs
If you think the decision was wrong, ask for a state hearing right away. If you ask for a hearing within 15 days of the date of the termination notice, your benefits will not stop or be lowered before the state hearing.
You have 90 days from the date of the notice to ask for a state hearing, although requests made after 15 days will not preserve your benefits.
You may ask for a state hearing using any of the following methods:
- Fill out and mail the “State Hearing Request” attached to your termination notice
- Fill out and fax the “State Hearing Request” to 614-728-9574
- Call the ODJFS Consumer Access Line at 1-866-635-3748 (1-866-ODJFS-4U)
- Email the ODJFS Bureau of State Hearings at bsh@odjfs.state.oh.us
Next Steps
Contact Legal Aid right away.
Other Resources
Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services Cuyahoga County Jobs and Family Services Lorain County Jobs and Family Services Lake County Jobs and Family Services Geauga County Jobs and Family Services Ashtabula County Jobs and Family Services
You may ask for an extension of your OWF cash assistance if you can show a hardship. Some examples of hardship are taking care of a sick family member, temporary inability to work because of domestic violence, and homelessness.
You may ask your caseworker for an extension because of this hardship. If your request for an extension is denied or ignored, you may ask for a State Hearing by using any of the following methods:
- Fill out and mail the “State Hearing Request” attached to your termination notice
- Fill out and fax the “State Hearing Request” to 614-728-9574
- Call the ODJFS Consumer Access Line at 1-866-635-3748 (1-866-ODJFS-4U)
- Email the ODJFS Bureau of State Hearings at bsh@odjfs.state.oh.us
Next Steps
If your request for a hardship extension is denied and you disagree with this decision, contact Legal Aid right away.
Other Resources
Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services Cuyahoga County Jobs and Family Services Lorain County Jobs and Family Services Lake County Jobs and Family Services Geauga County Jobs and Family Services Ashtabula County Jobs and Family Services
I applied for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and was denied. What do I do? Close
If you think you are disabled, appeal the decision right away. You have 60 days to appeal the decision. You may appeal by any of the following methods:
- Go to your local Social Security Office
- Call your local Social Security Office
- Call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213
- Visit the Social Security Administration website at www.ssa.gov
Next Steps
Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association
Lawyer Referral Service
(216) 696-3532
Other Resources
I am low-income and am involved in a civil case. Is there a way to reduce or eliminate fees? Close
When a person wants to file a civil case, the court requires that person to pay a filing fee to start the legal process. Also, a person who is a party to a case and wants to ask the court to do something by filing a “motion” or a “counterclaim” must also pay a fee. In order to fully participate in a legal proceeding, courts often require payment of many different costs and fees.
In many situations, you can file your documents in court without payment or with a lower payment if you also file a “poverty affidavit.” A poverty affidavit is a written, sworn statement that you are low income and do not have enough money to pay the fees. You will need to list your income, assets and dependents on the affidavit. Once you file a poverty affidavit in a case, the clerk will either not charge you any money or will only charge a small fraction of the normal fee to file most other documents in the same case.
You can complete a poverty affidavit at The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, even if you are not represented by an attorney from Legal Aid. If you need a poverty affidavit, go to any Legal Aid office during normal business hours (note recent changes) and request the form from the receptionist. Be sure you also have the form notarized, which Legal Aid can do as well. You will need photo identification to have the poverty affidavit notarized.
After you complete a poverty affidavit, you must take it to the clerk of courts where your case is being heard. The poverty affidavit will only apply to that specific case. If you have another case at the same or a later time, you will need a second poverty affidavit. Also, in Ohio, the poverty affidavit allows you to file documents in a case without payment or with lesser payment but does not eliminate all fees. At the end of the case, you might still be responsible for some fees such as court costs.
This article was written by Legal Aid attorney Anne Sweeney and appeared in The Alert: Volume 29, Issue 1. Click here to read the full issue.
