Workers’ compensation is a form of insurance that provides wage replacement and medical benefits to employees who are injured or become ill on the job. Food stamps, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), is a federal program that provides food assistance to low-income individuals and families. While workers’ compensation benefits are not considered income for the purposes of determining SNAP eligibility, a workers’ compensation settlement can affect SNAP benefits in some cases.
When a workers’ compensation settlement is paid in a lump sum, it can be counted as a resource for the purposes of SNAP eligibility. Resources are limited to $2,000 for individuals and $3,000 for households, so a large workers’ compensation settlement could make an individual or family ineligible for SNAP benefits. However, if the workers’ compensation settlement is paid in monthly installments, it will not be counted as a resource and will not affect SNAP eligibility.
