NYC to end debit card program for migrant families

New York City will end a pilot program that gave prepaid debit cards to migrant families to help them buy food.

New York City launched the program earlier this year. It allowed migrant families to buy food at grocery stores, supermarkets, convenience stores, and bodegas, local station Pix 11 reported.

“Through the immediate response cards pilot program, we were able to reduce food waste, redirect millions of dollars to our local economy, and provide more culturally relevant food to more than 2,600 migrant families in our care,” a City Hall spokesperson said Thursday.

The spokesperson said the contract for the pilot program will not be renewed when it ends in January 2025.

“As we move towards more competitive contracting for asylum seeker programs, we have chosen not to renew the emergency contract for this pilot program once the one-year term concludes,” they told the outlet.

The city will instead transition back to food delivery services for migrants in their care in the hotel voucher program, according to the City Hall spokesperson.

"For over two years, we have provided care to more than 222,000 migrants while saving $2 billion in asylum seeker-related costs," the spokesperson said. "Thanks to our resettlement efforts, intensive case management, and national-leading Asylum Application Help Center, more than 160,000 migrants have left our shelter system and taken their next steps towards self-sufficiency."

Pix 11 is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns The Hill.