As Tens of Thousands of New Yorkers Lose Essential Benefits, United Way of New York City Partners with Trinity Church to Strengthen Benefits Access City-Wide

Jul 30, 2026 | Blog, Blog Featured Articles, Impact, News, News Featured Articles

July 29, 2026

Cross-sector convening on July 28 brought together NYC Department of Social Services, NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, funders, and community leaders to strengthen New York City's response to sweeping changes to food and healthcare benefits

As sweeping new SNAP and Medicaid work requirements take effect through H.R.1, United Way of New York City in partnership with Trinity Church NYC convened leaders this week from government, community-based organizations, and philanthropy, to align strategies, share best practices, and strengthen cross-sector coordination, with one overarching goal: help New Yorkers keep their benefits.

The convening was an important milestone for United for Benefits Access (UBA)-UWNYC's citywide initiative designed to help eligible New Yorkers maintain access to the food and healthcare benefits that are foundational to their economic security.

"Access to food and health care are absolute necessities and they cannot be treated as optional if New Yorkers are to live with dignity, let alone thrive," United Way of New York City CEO and President Grace Bonilla shared at the event. "This initiative builds on our ongoing efforts to stay ahead of evolving SNAP and Medicaid requirements and ensure our community-based partners are not navigating these changes alone."

Speakers included Beatriz de la Torre, Chief Philanthropy Officer, Trinity Church NYC, Erin Dalton, Commissioner, New York City Department of Social Services, Scott French, Human Resources Administration (HRA) Administrator, Sonia Sekhar, Deputy Director, NY State of Health, Dr. Alister Master, Commissioner, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Carlyn Cowen, Chief Policy and Public Affairs Officer, Chinese American Planning Council, and Dr. Ted Long, Clinical Services and Population Health, and Chief Executive Officer, H+H Accountable Care Organization, NYC Health + Hospitals. Importantly, the event also tapped the expertise of leaders and representatives from frontline community-based organizations across the five boroughs - the places New Yorkers most often turn to and trust for their day-to-day needs and benefits access.

Throughout the discussion, participants emphasized that preventing unnecessary benefits loss will not happen without coordinated action across sectors, and that community-based organizations will play a critical role in helping New Yorkers navigate the latest unprecedented changes.

Due to the new work-reporting requirements under H.R.1 - which impose a heavy, confusing, and unprecedented paperwork burden on benefits recipients - more than 22,000 New Yorkers have already lost SNAP benefits in June alone. Nearly four million New Yorkers on Medicaid will also soon be subject to the new work-reporting requirements. At a time when 59% of New Yorkers cannot afford their basic needs, these new administrative requirements risk worsening the city's affordability crisis.

UBA will equip community-based organizations across the five boroughs with the training, technology, multilingual outreach, advocacy, and referral networks needed to help New Yorkers keep their benefits. Building readiness among these trusted frontline organizations is essential to ensuring New Yorkers get the support they need before a missed deadline becomes a lost benefit.

In the months ahead, United for Benefits Access will expand training and technical assistance, launch new technology and multilingual outreach efforts, and more to meet this moment - and ensure benefits-eligible New Yorkers can lead healthy, economically secure lives.