Social Services Resources

Navigating social services can be a daunting task. We’ve tried to put together an easy guide to help you find resources that you may need. If you do not find what you are looking for on this page, please ask a librarian at your branch for assistance.

Sign Up for Food Stamps & More

You can sign up online for many social services in Louisiana. To do this, you will need to visit the Louisiana Café Customer Portal. On this site, you can sign up for the following assistance programs:

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (formerly Food Stamps) - Provides monthly benefits that help low-income households buy the food they need for good health
Family Independence Temporary Assistance Program (FITAP) - Provides temporary cash assistance to eligible low-income families who need assistance for children
Kinship Care Subsidy Program (KCSP)- Provides cash assistance for eligible children who reside with qualified relatives other than parents
Child Support Enforcement Services - Provides parent locator and paternity establishment services, as well as assistance to establish and enforce child and/or medical support orders and collection and distribution of child support payments
Louisiana Combined Application Project (LaCAP) - LaCAP is a food assistance program for Louisiana residents who are at least 60 years of age and receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

If you need help filling out these forms or signing up for these programs, visit the site from Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services.

Sign Up for the WIC Program

The Special Supplemental Program for Women Infants and Children (WIC) is a nutrition program that provides healthy food, breastfeeding support, nutrition education, and referrals to social services for women who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or postpartum. Children can receive benefits up to their fifth birthday. You can find more information about the program and eligibility in this WIC brochure.

The Louisiana WIC Program requires scheduling an appointment at your WIC clinic of choice. The Louisiana WIC Program does not process applications online. For more information or to locate a WIC clinic near you call 800-251-BABY (251-2229) or visit the website.

Sign Up for Unemployment & Get Job Search Assistance

If you need to sign up for Unemployment Benefits and get started with a new job search, you can find help at the Louisiana Workforce Commission - HIRE site. On this site, you can do the following:

Start or re-open an unemployment claim
File for weekly unemployment benefits
Post or create a resume
Get job alerts
Find job listings and explore careers

Find Services for Area Seniors

The Caddo Council on Aging has information and resources for area seniors, including Meals on Wheels, Prescription Assistance Programs, In-Home Services, and Legal Services. You can visit their website or call them at 318-676-7900 to find out more about their programs.

Sign Up for Healthcare

Medicaid/LAChip

Healthy Louisiana is where you can now sign up for healthcare assistance programs, such as LA Medicaid and LA Chip. If you already have applied for either of these programs and receive benefits, you can use the LA Medicaid/LA Chip Self Service Portal. You can also find information on Medicaid and your eligibility at the Health Care website.

Medicare

You can find information on applying for Medicare on this site from the Social Security Administration. Medicare.gov also has a useful site for Getting Started with Medicare. You can find key dates and other resources on this page.

Affordable Care Act

You can sign up for healthcare under the Affordable Care Act on https://www.healthcare.gov/.

Tricare

If you receive healthcare through the military, you can find information about your coverage on the Tricare website.

Disability Services

Exceptional Lives Louisiana contains resources, guides, and more information to help find benefits and services in Louisiana for children and young adults with disabilities. Find more at: Exceptional Lives Louisiana

File Your Taxes Online for Free

If you make less than $66,000 per year, the IRS offers free online tax filing for you. You can find options to file your taxes for free here: https://www.irs.gov/filing/free-file-do-your-federal-taxes-for-free