Nov 16, 2022

If You're on SNAP, You Can Get FREE Wireless Service!

If You're on SNAP, You Can Get FREE Wireless Service!

There are a lot of Government subsidized programs that have been put in place to be lifelines for those who need them. Here we’re going to talk about three federal assistance programs that are vital:

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), and Lifeline.

SNAP helps families purchase food. ACP and Lifeline help families stay connected with free wireless and a free smartphone. Let’s start first with SNAP.

About the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

Young mom in a yellow dress holding a baby and cooking on the stove while talking on a cell phone.

SNAP provides nutrition benefits to supplement the food budget of families that need it so they can purchase healthy food. If you qualify for SNAP, you may also qualify for a free smartphone.

You can use SNAP benefits to purchase any food for your household, including:

  • Fruits and vegetables;

  • Meat, poultry, and fish;

  • Dairy products;

  • Breads and cereals;

  • Other foods such as snack foods and non-alcoholic beverages; and

  • Seeds and plants, which produce food for the household to eat.

But you cannot use SNAP benefits to buy:

  • Beer, wine, liquor, cigarettes, or tobacco

  • Vitamins, medicines, and supplements. If a product has a Supplement Facts label, it is considered a supplement and is not eligible for SNAP purchase.

  • Live animals (except shellfish, fish removed from water, and animals slaughtered prior to pick-up from the store).

  • Foods that are hot at the point of sale

  • Any nonfood items such as:
    - Pet foods  
    - Cleaning supplies, paper products, and other household supplies.
    - Hygiene items, cosmetics

How SNAP benefits are delivered:

Woman with short gray hair pushing a shopping cart in a parking lot while talking on a cell phone.

If you’re deemed eligible for this government assistance, you will receive SNAP benefits on an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card, which works like a debit card. Benefits are automatically loaded into your account each month. You can use your EBT card to buy groceries at authorized food stores and retailers.

How to find out if you are eligible for SNAP:

Mom and young son sitting on the couch looking at a cell phone and a tablet.

To get SNAP benefits, you need to apply in the state where you live and you must meet certain requirements, including resource and income limits. If your state agency determines that yours is one of the eligible households, you will receive SNAP benefits back to the date you submitted your application.

How to apply for SNAP:

Mature couple having coffee and laughing at something on a cell phone.

You can contact your state agency by visiting your local SNAP office, visiting your state agency’s website, or calling your state’s toll-free SNAP Information hotline. Some states have online applications that can be completed from the state agency website.

For the SNAP state directory of resources, click here.

Moving On

Young dad and daughter in orange tee shirts playing in the backyard and taking a selfie.

At the beginning of this post we said we’d be talking about three subsidized federal programs that have been put in place to be lifelines for those who need them. Now that we’ve covered SNAP, let’s move on to the Affordable Connectivity Program and Lifeline.

The Affordable Connectivity ProgramL free cell phone service

Cute young couple snuggled on the sofa giggling.

ACP helps keep you connected by providing discounted phone service or free phone service and, if you are qualified for SNAP, you are qualified for ACP and Lifeline.

About the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP)

Young dad and daughter relaxing on the sofa with a smartphone.

ACP is one of the government assistance programs operated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that provides discounts on monthly broadband Internet service. (It replaced the Emergency Broadband Benefit program just recently.) ACP benefits may be obtained from any participating provider of your choice including Life Wireless. Only one member of a household can participate in the program and the service cannot be transferred to another family member or individual.

Because many families struggle to afford cell phones and Internet access, both of which are vital to staying connected, the Federal Government offers free phone services through the Lifeline program.

About the Lifeline program

Young woman leaning against a barn in the mountains talking on a cell phone.

The Lifeline program was created to help qualified households pay for connectivity services such as wireless and internet plans. As with the Affordable Connectivity Program, only one member of a household can participate in the program and the service cannot be transferred to another family member or individual.

Examples of one household:

  • A married couple that lives together

  • A parent/guardian and child who live together

  • An adult who lives with friends or family who financially support him/her

Each of these are one household and must share one benefit.

Examples of more than one household:

  • Four roommates who live together but do not share money are four households. They can have one benefit each, for a total of four benefits.

  • 30 seniors who live in an assisted-living home are 30 households. They can have one benefit each, for a total of 30 total benefits.

Each state has different eligibility requirements such federal poverty guidelines such as receiving government assistance or having a household income that is at or below the federal poverty level for the state in which you reside.

Young man in a plaid shirt and baseball cap sending a text message from a field.

In general though, you are qualified to receive Lifeline if you participate in any of the government programs listed here:

  • Food Stamps or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

  • Medicaid (not Medicare)

  • Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

  • Section 8 Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPHA)

  • Veteran's Pension or Survivor's Pension Benefit

Additionally, if you are a resident of Federally-recognized Tribal lands, you may qualify under the following programs:

  • Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations

  • Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance

  • Tribally Administered TANF

  • Head Start (if you meet the income-qualifying standards)

Cheerful father, son, and daughter smiling for a selfie.

Even if you’re paying just $20 a month for cell service, wouldn’t it be great to have that $240 to spend on groceries? If you apply for Lifeline and are approved, you’ll receive:

  • FREE Unlimited Talk & Text

  • FREE 15GB Data (+ more data for California residents)

  • FREE Smartphone (or bring your own)

How pairing Lifeline with the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) doubles your connectivity

Young adult couple walking along and looking at directions on a cell phone.

If you’re approved for Lifeline and you sign up for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), you get two sources of free cell phones with talk, text, and unlimited data that you can split between two phones. That means free cell service for you and free cell service for someone you love. If your child has been asking for a cell phone, this is a terrific opportunity to provide him or her with talk, text, unlimited data and the ability to stay in touch with you!

Woman relaxing in a hammock and checking her email.

Of course you don’t have to split the service between two phones, you can keep it all on one. But it’s a wonderful option if your spouse, child or relative needs a phone – and who doesn’t? – but has been unable to get one due to the expense.

Whichever option you choose – to keep the data on one phone or split it between two – Life Wireless will make sure you receive the free talk, text, and unlimited data to help you stay connected.

Man in a blue denim short rubbing his chin and reading something on his smartphone.

Option 1: Combine Your Data

Activate Lifeline and ACP on the same device and receive unlimited talk, text, and data, plus 5GB of mobile hotspot.

Option 2: Split Your Data
Split your data between two phones or supported devices and you’ll have one device with ACP’s free talk, text, and 6GB of data and get a free second device with Lifeline’s talk, text, and 4.5GB of data (6GB of data in California).

Important things to note:

Young mom and daughter sitting on a sofa Factiming a friend.

Lifeline and the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) are separate programs. Lifeline benefits may be combined with ACP benefits and applied to the same service plan. You may also apply Lifeline and ACP benefits to different service plans. You don’t need to enroll in Lifeline in order to enroll in ACP and you do not need to enroll in ACP to enroll in Lifeline. You may choose to get Lifeline and ACP services from different service providers, and you may transfer your Lifeline and ACP services to another provider subject to certain regulatory restrictions.

About Life Wireless

Man wearing an orange jacket sitting on a rock in the woods sending a text.

Life Wireless service is a prepaid service offered to those eligible for ACP discount benefits and those eligible for Lifeline benefits.  To maintain your service and benefits, you need to activate your service by calling someone, initiating data usage (by going on Facebook, for example), or by responding to instructions from Life Wireless to activate the service.

Happy family of four sitting on the hood of a car and smiling for a selfie.

To keep your account active, you must use the service at least once during any 30-day period by calling someone, answering a call from someone other than Life Wireless, sending a text message, using cellular data (again, by going on Facebook or Amazon, for example), purchasing additional service from Life Wireless, or by responding to a direct contact from Life Wireless confirming that you want to continue receiving service from Life Wireless.

Young woman leaning against a farm truck and talking on a cell phone in a field.

Should your service goes unused for 30 days, you will no longer be eligible for Lifeline benefits and your service may be suspended (allowing only 911 calls and calls to the Life Wireless's customer care center) subject to a 15-day cure period during which you must use the service (as described above) in order to fully re-activate your lifeline service, keep your telephone number and remain enrolled in the ACP.

For questions about Life Wireless, visit our Contact Us page here.

Like Medicaid, Lifeline is your lifeline to maintaining a healthy life.

Young woman in a red and black check shirt and a baseball cap holding a tablet in a corn field.

See if you or anyone in your family is entitled to Medicaid, then stay connected for FREE to family, friends, employers, your children, your whole world with Lifeline.

Enroll now by using the Life Wireless Online Enrollment form.

Young woman with round sunglasses and curly hair checking her phone in the sunshine.

Fast facts about Life Wireless: 

Yes, you can add more minutes and data!

You can purchase additional minutes or data one of the following ways:

  • Go to www.LifeWireless.com and click "Add Minutes/Data"

  • If you have a smart phone, go to your MyLifeWireless app and click "Add Minutes".

  • Call Customer Service at 1-888-543-3620, or by dialing 611 on your Life Wireless phone.

  • You can also go to any Moneygram location and use Receive Code: 7924

Yes, you can track your minutes!

Your minutes replenish each month on your anniversary date before end of the day. For example if you signed up and received your minutes on the 12th of the month, your minutes will replenish every month on the 12th of the month.

You can check your account balance the following ways:

  • Go to www.LifeWireless.com and click "My Account"

  • Go to your MyLifeWireless app on your phone, and click "Check Balance"

  • Call Customer Service at 1-888-543-3620, or by dialing 611 on your Life Wireless phone.

Yes, you can keep your current phone number!

If your application is approved, you have the option to keep your current phone number.

Once you receive your Life Wireless phone in the mail, call Life Wireless Customer Service at 1-888-543-3620 and a representative will assist you in keeping your current number. Make sure that you don't call from your Lifeline phone and have your account number and password from your previous carrier handy.

What our customers are saying:

"Life Wireless has been great. I have used it so many times for appointments and finding the proper care providers for my needs as well as for my family's needs. Thank you so much Life Wireless!" Rebecca L., KY

“Without this phone I would be lost. It has helped me stay in contact with my daughter’s specialist. I schedule her appointments and they can call back if there are any complications with her results. Thank you, Life Wireless.” Amanda Z., PA
 
“I've been looking for apartments, doctor’s offices, and school phone numbers, and my data provided has been a tremendous help in gaining access to this information. I'm very grateful for this service.” Maria R. AZ

Posted 1 year ago