Original source: New York Times: Letters to the Editor

To the Editor:

"49 Million Americans Report a Lack of Food" (news article, Nov. 17):

You report that 49 million Americans lack "consistent access to adequate food." Equally shocking is the fact that up to one-quarter of Americans qualify for food stamps (and other benefits) but don’t use them. Sometimes they don’t even know they’re eligible.

Astonishingly, more than $65 billion in such benefits and services goes unclaimed each year. Government entities, partnering with nonprofit organizations, must launch a coordinated campaign to streamline the entire benefits process. There is no excuse for maintaining a 19th-century welfare system in a 21st-century society.

Technology and other common-sense strategies can ease access and increase the number of families that are helped. For example, a pilot program run by San Francisco uses Webcams to replace in-person interviews for food stamps.

We must create easier, faster, bolder systems to place food stamps in the hands of the hungry.

Elisabeth Mason

New York, Nov. 20, 2009

The writer is chief executive of Single Stop USA, which tries to improve access to government benefits, tax credits and services for the working poor.