NYC to end debit card program for migrant families

by: Finn Hoogensen, Zhané Caldwell

Posted: Nov 7, 2024 / 07:47 PM EST

Updated: Nov 8, 2024 / 10:32 AM EST


Editor’s note: The story in the video player aired on July 3, 2024.

NEW YORK (PIX11) – New York City will end a pilot program that gave prepaid debit cards to migrant families to help them buy food.

New York City launched the pilot program earlier this year. It allowed migrant families to buy food at grocery stores, supermarkets, convenience stores, and bodegas.

“Through the immediate response cards pilot program, we were able to reduce food waste, redirect millions of dollars to our local economy, and provide more culturally relevant food to more than 2,600 migrant families in our care,” a City Hall spokesperson said Thursday.

The City Hall spokesperson said the contract for the pilot program will not be renewed when it ends in January 2025.

“As we move towards more competitive contracting for asylum-seeker programs, we have chosen not to renew the emergency contract for this pilot program once the one-year term concludes,” the City Hall spokesperson said.

The city will instead transition back to food delivery services for migrants in their care in the hotel voucher program, according to the City Hall spokesperson.
More: Latest News from Around the Tri-State

“For over two years, we have provided care to more than 222,000 migrants while saving $2 billion in asylum seeker-related costs. Thanks to our resettlement efforts, intensive case management, and national-leading Asylum Application Help Center, more than 160,000 migrants have left our shelter system and taken their next steps towards self-sufficiency,” the City Hall spokesperson said.

Finn Hoogensen is a digital journalist who has covered local news for more than five years. He has been with PIX11 News since 2022. See more of his work here.

Source