Thousands of calls from Massachusetts residents seeking help with SNAP benefits are going unanswered, and advocates say the problem is leaving vulnerable families struggling to access food assistance.
25 Investigates found that the state’s own data show thousands of calls have been unable to connect. A lawsuit alleges the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance automatically disconnected 78% of calls to its assistance line on average in July.
Residents told Boston 25 News they repeatedly tried to reach caseworkers while facing benefit cuts, application delays and financial hardship. The state says it is increasing caseworkers, expanding outreach, and using new technology to improve service.
Answers, uncovering the truth.
Boston 25 News investigates.
Disconnected calls, voicemails that are full.
25 investigates hearing from viewers
who say they can't get a hold of anyone at the state office
that connects them with the food assistance program known as SNAP.
And we found they're not the only ones.
Thousands of calls going unanswered every month.
Now the state's facing a lawsuit for this help on hold.
And I've tried every single day, multiple times.
But David Smith says day after day his calls went unanswered.
The Shirley man's on permanent disability.
And receives food assistance through SNAP,
or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
The federal program's administered through
the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance, or DTA.
David tells 25 Investigates he started
calling DTA after getting this letter,
stating his monthly benefit was being cut
from about $250 to just $31 a month.
$31? That ain't gonna feed me.
So he called the number listed on the letter.
I go through all the steps,
put in my social security number, put in my birth year.
I do everything.
Next thing I know, I get the recording stating.
We're sorry, but due to high call volume,
we cannot connect you to a case manager at this time.
It's the same message we got when we tried the number.
And it hangs up.
David said he then contacted his local SNAP office in Fitchburg.
That voicemail box was full.
That's when he called 25 Investigates.
So how are you feeling right now knowing that you can't get anyone
on the phone to answer some basic questions?
I think the system is just letting everybody down.
Because I have a feeling if I can't get through, I'm not the only one.
He's not.
No callback.
No callback. Couldn't get a callback from anybody.
Dale Duquette has five children.
He said he was out of work caring for his mother in hospice
when he applied for SNAP in July.
Just denial after denial. He says he couldn't reach anyone
at the main line or his local DTA office in Brockton.
Food banks, going to family members
houses, the kids would sleep there, you know.
It was rough, it wasn't easy. It took nearly
three months for Dale to get that application approved.
25 Investigates examined DTA's own performance scorecard
and found thousands of calls for help have gone unanswered this year.
You call this a crisis. Why?
The system has to work well for the folks who are eligible.
You go hungry, you skip groceries, you skip meals. That is a crisis.
Vicky Negus is a senior policy advocate
at the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, or MLRI.
She says the problem is twofold.
The Trump administration made changes to the benefit process.
So it's taking caseworkers longer to get through them.
And she says Massachusetts simply does not have enough caseworkers.
These two things together have created a perfect storm.
MLRI is now suing the state of Massachusetts
on behalf of SNAP beneficiaries,
stating DTA automatically disconnected 78%
of average daily calls to the assistance line in July alone.
And for SNAP benefits, people cannot just go online.
You have to talk to a worker in order to be approved for SNAP.
You have to.
You have to.
And under federal and state law.
Since the so-called Big Beautiful Bill took effect July 2025,
the number of Massachusetts households receiving
SNAP benefits dropped 16 percent, or 105,000.
70,000 fewer children are getting food assistance, a 21 percent drop.
MLRI says it's because they can't connect,
not because they don't qualify.
DTA placed the blame on the Trump administration, saying the state
is focused on ensuring vulnerable people don't go hungry.
Adding our efforts include increasing the number of caseworkers,
expanding outreach, enhancing staff training,
and utilizing new technology to help us serve clients more efficiently.
I'm scared that I can't get a hold of anybody,
and it's frustrating, and it ticks me off.
When we passed David's information on to DTA, the agency called him
that day and is working to restore his full benefit.
