The federal government is rolling out a major campaign to expand delivery of federal benefits via debit cards. It’s an effort to help recipients of Social Security and Supplemental Security Income who don’t have bank accounts and hence don’t benefit from the convenience of electronic fund transfer. Nationally, about 4 million benefit recipients still receive paper checks, resulting in plenty of lost checks and delays.

The U.S. Treasury announced it wil be mailing information to benefits recipients in 12 western states on how to sign up for the cards. Up to two million Social Security recipients will have the opportunity to sign up. Presumably the program will be rolled out to more states in the months ahead.

The Direct Express debit cards are issued by MasterCard. Each month, the Treasury department will load benefits onto the cards, which can be used to pay bills or get cash from ATM machines. If you live in one of the 12 states covered by the offer, you can sign up directly at the Direct Express website or by calling (877) 212-9991.

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Tags | Social Security