The commonwealth is rolling out more secure EBT cards equipped with “chip-and-tap” technology to better prevent Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) fraud. Officials say the new cards will protect families from having their food assistance “skimmed.”
Virginia is among the first five states to implement this new technology.
Gov. Abigail Spanberger announced the rollout last Thursday, expected to take place now through December. The second round of card rollouts will begin in late October and all EBT cardholders in Virginia are expected to have their new cards in hand by the end of this year.
Chip-enabled cards are significantly more resistant to a kind of theft known as “skimming,” where credit card information is captured at the point of sale and the benefits are drained before families can use them. Households do not need to take any action to receive a new card, and benefits will continue without interruption throughout the transition.
The initial rollout targets localities that have experienced high levels of benefit theft — including Chesterfield, Colonial Heights, Clarke, Fairfax City and County, Giles, Lynchburg, Madison, Manassas Park, New Kent, Norfolk, Northampton, Orange, Patrick, Portsmouth, Radford, Richmond City, Roanoke City, Smyth, Surry, Washington, and Wythe.
More information about the chip card transition is available at virginiachipcard.com Cardholders with questions can contact the EBT Call Center at 866-281-2448, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
