myBenefits is a quick and easy way for people in New York State to find answers to questions about New York State's programs and services. It lets you see if you are eligible for:

• Food stamps
• Earned income tax credits
• Child and dependent care tax credit
• Home energy assistance program
• Medicaid
• Family Health Plus
• Child Health Plus
• WIC - Women, Infants, Children
• Healthy NY
• Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage(EPIC) Program
• School breakfast and lunch meals

The website is in Spanish and English and lets you fill out a pre-screening tool to see if you are eligible for these programs, which should take about ten minutes to do. You also have the option to provide your initials or a different name in order to remain unidentifiable. If you qualify for these programs, the website will then take you through the steps you need to take in order to apply for the benefits.

The more exact information you provide, the better they will be able to tell you what benefits you are eligible for, so be sure to have your financial information handy.

New York City residents also have the option of using ACCESS NYC, another screening tool that will let you know if you qualify for over 30 City, State, and Federal benefits programs. You can do this process without providing a name too.

The Access NYC website is a little more difficult to use, but it is able to tell you if you qualify for a lot more programs, so is probably worth it. Both websites require similar personal information.