Question

Briefly explain the differences between TANF, the earned income tax credit, SNAP, and Medicaid.

Short answer

TANF provides assistance to the poor in the form of spending on various anti-poverty programs. EITC provides assistance to the poor in the form of a tax credit. SNAP provides assistance to the poor for buying food. Medicaid is a health insurance program for the poor.

Step-by-step solution

Step 1. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) is a government-aided welfare program (1996) where each state is provided with a fixed amount of money from the part of the federal government to be spent on any anti-poverty program (like direct cash transfers to the poor families, reduction in teenage pregnancy, etc.) by the states.

Step 2. The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), started in 1975 as a welfare program by the federal government, assists the poor or low-income groups in the form of a tax credit of a certain amount up to a certain income level, followed by an increase in the tax break with an increase in the income earned up to a certain level.

Step 3. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) was started in 1964 by the federal government as a welfare program where poor people are given a card (that acts like a debit card each month) that they can use for buying food.

Step 4. Medicaid

Medicaid started in 1965 as a welfare program is a 'joint health insurance program' between both 'the states and the government', where the fund is provided by the federal government but administered by states as per the states' requirements.

Step 5. Difference between TANF, EITC, SNAP, and Medicaid

TANF	EITC	SNAP	Medicaid
TANF is a welfare program where a fixed amount of funds is provided by the government to the states for spending on anti-poverty programs to help needy poor families.	EITC is a welfare program where assistance from the part of the government is directly reached to the poor or low-income groups via a tax credit up to a certain level of income.	SNAP is a welfare program where poor families get assistance for buying food with the use of a card given by the government to them.	Medicaid is a health insurance welfare program for the poor held between the government and the states.
The eligibility criteria for TANF is that the states need to show the work requirements on which the money will be spent and an individual will not be provided the assistance for more than five years.	There are no eligibility criteria for ETIC. But the tax credit under ETIC increases up to a certain level of income, after that it is not applicable.	In the case of SNAP, the amount of food a household is eligible for depends on the number of children in the household, income earned by the household, and other factors. Generally, if the 30% income of a household can't meet the requirements for nutritionally sufficient food, then the family is eligible for SNAP.	The eligibility criteria and the level of benefits under Medicaid are administered by each state separately. So, it varies from state to state. But, generally, the poor living below the poverty line are eligible for the benefit under Medicaid. later, the near-poor also came into the same frame of receiving benefits from Medicaid.