Debit cards mean faster payments, increased safety and ease of use

from BUSINESS WIRE
Jan. 25, 2007

NEW YORK--The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training has selected JPMorgan Chase to provide debit cards for unemployment insurance benefit payments, replacing unemployment checks.

JPMorgan Chase will supply approximately 50,000 debit cards a year carrying unemployment insurance benefits approved by the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training. The electronic payment debit cards can be used like any regular debit card—to purchase items from merchants or get cash out of an automated teller machine (ATM).

"We awarded JPMorgan Chase our electronic payment card program due to the company's extensive experience and success in similar programs in several states," said Adelita S. Orefice, Director of the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training.

"The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training will make it easier for unemployment recipients to get their benefits, while reducing costs," said Tim Noble, vice president and relationship banker for the state of Rhode Island. "Debit cards are superior to checks because they provide benefits faster and are more convenient than checks."

Unemployment benefit recipients will get their payments as fast as 24 hours after they certify and are approved by the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training. The cards can then be used to purchase items at any merchant that accepts Visa. Recipients can get cash at any ATM and transactions will be surcharge-free at any Washington Trust, Allpoint and Chase ATM nationwide.

Debit cards also benefit recipients who may not have a bank account and would otherwise have to pay check-cashing fees. The cards are safer, as recipients can leave their funds in a secure environment instead of carrying cash around and the funds are FDIC insured and fully covered by federal banking regulations. Cardholders can also access their balances securely via a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week toll-free number or via the internet.

JPMorgan Chase, through its Direct Payment Card product, has launched and continues to administer unemployment debit card programs in Arizona, Louisiana and New York. The firm also provides debit card services to more than 13 million participants in publicly funded programs domestically and internationally. In Rhode Island, JPMorgan Chase has also used debit cards to replace food stamp coupons and public assistance checks. Nationally, JPMorgan Chase provides debit card services to agencies in more than 30 states and territories, and provides a similar service to public pension recipients in the United Kingdom. Other JPMorgan Chase debit cards provide payments for Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, child support, subsidized child and foster care, Women and Infant Children (WIC) nutrition benefits, payroll, and disaster benefits.