State Benefits — Assistance When You Need It

Coloradans, including those with disabilities, can use an online service to screen, apply for, and manage medical, food, cash, and early childhood assistance through Colorado PEAK. The benefit programs described here do not rule out work. A Benefits Counselor can help you plan for employment while receiving benefits.

Health First Colorado Buy-In Program for Working Adults with Disabilities

This program allows working adults (16-64) with a qualifying disability to “buy in” and maintain health coverage even if they earn too much to qualify for regular Medicaid. Check out the Colorado Cross Disability Coalition Video, learn more details at Health Care Policy and Financing, and talk to a benefits counselor.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)/Food Assistance

Formerly known as food stamps, SNAP provides food assistance benefits as part of a federal nutrition program to help low-income households purchase food.

Aid to the Needy Disabled (AND) and Aid to the Blind (AB)

AND and AB provide cash assistance to low-income Coloradans with a disability that prevents work, when documented by a licensed physician. AND may be temporarily provided while Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits are sought, or a supplement may be available for SSI recipients who do not receive the full SSI benefit.

Colorado Works/Temporary Aid for Needy Families (TANF)

Colorado Works/TANF is a cash assistance program designed to assist eligible families with very low incomes to attain economic security by promoting job preparation, work, and family stabilization.

Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP)

LEAP helps low-income households with winter home heating costs. The program operates from November 1 through April 30 each year, and eligible households receive one benefit per program year.

Colorado Child Care Assistance Program (CCCAP)

CCCAP provides child care assistance to families who are working, searching for employment, or are in training, and families who are enrolled in the Colorado Works Program and need child care services to support their efforts toward self-sufficiency.

Housing Assistance/Rental Help

The Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, provides information about subsidized apartments, public housing, and housing choice vouchers at its Colorado webpage.

The Colorado Office of Employment First sits under JFK Partners, the state’s University Center of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, a program of the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Its creation was envisioned by Colorado Employment First Advisory Partnership (EFAP), a multi-state agency and stakeholder-led collaborative, and was made possible, in part, by funding from the Colorado Legislature and generously matched through the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) at the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE).

© 2020 Colorado Office of Employment First. All Rights Reserved.

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