Public Programs and Services

Note: The Department has not evaluated many of the programs listed below. In particular for those programs not affiliated with the State of Missouri, the Department encourages citizens to learn more about the programs on their own prior to participating.

Missouri Resource Guide - Gives you information about meeting your basic needs, getting the support you need and preparing for a career. 

Access Crisis Intervention Hotlines
Adult Education and Literacy Programs
Bankruptcy Assistance
Big Brothers and Big Sisters
Boys and Girls Club
Child Care Assistance
Commodity Supplemental Food
Program (CSFP)

Dress for Success
Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC)
Food Stamps
Free Health Clinics
GED® Testing Information
Get Help Paying Your Taxes
Health Insurance Premium Payment Program (HIPP)
Kansas City Project Hope
Library Locator
List of Missouri Homeless Shelters
Loan Modification Alert
Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
Making Home Affordable (MHA)
Medicaid
Medicare
Missouri Food Banks
Missouri Housing Development Commission (MHDC)
Missouri Public Transportation
Reentry 2030 Program
Saint Louis University Legal Clinic
Share-A-Ride Carpooling
Show Me Healthy Women (SMHW)
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

TEACH Missouri
Temporary Cash Assistance
Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program
WISEWOMAN
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)

 
jobs.mo.gov logo

 

Access Crisis Intervention Hotlines
Missouri Department of Mental Health
Find numbers for important hotlines- suicide prevention, mental health crisis, gambling problems, alcohol or other drug abuse, and mental retardation or other developmental disability crisis.

DMH Crisis Intervention

988 (suicide hotline)
Adult Education and Literacy Programs
Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
The Missouri Adult Education and Literacy (AEL) Program provides assistance that helps Missouri adults get the basic skills they need to be productive workers, family members, and citizens. The major areas of support are Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English Language Acquisition. These programs emphasize basic skills such as reading, writing, math, English language competency, and problem-solving.
Adult Education and Literacy
Bankruptcy Assistance
Serving residents of St. Louis as well as those who reside in St. Louis, St. Charles, Lincoln and Jefferson Counties
St. Louis Bar Foundation
The Pro Se Assistance Program (PSAP) is a free legal clinic providing two types of consultations for those in the St. Louis area: pre-filing for those who are considering bankruptcy and post-filing for those who have already filed for bankruptcy. Volunteer private attorneys provide a free 30-minute consultation with referrals for further no-cost or low-cost legal services.
bamsl.org/bankruptcy
Pro Se Assistance Program Flier
844-758-4059
Big Brothers and Big Sisters
Research shows that one-on-one mentoring has a positive effect on children's lives. Visit their website to volunteer as a mentor or enroll your child.
bbbs.org
215-567-7000 (national office)
Boys and Girls Club
Boys and Girls Club is designed to help improve graduation rates in America's youth by providing a variety of programs and activities to prepare young people for real-world successes.
bgca.org
404-487-5700 (national headquarters)
Child Care Assistance
Missouri Department of Elementary & Secondary Education
This program provides eligible parents/guardians with assistance with payment for child care to enable families to gain employment or remain employed.
dese.mo.gov/childhood/child-care-subsidy/families
573-415-8605
Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP)
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
CSFP is a supplemental nutrition program providing services to older persons (age 60 and above) and pregnant women, new mothers, infants, and children up to their 6th birthday. Primary services include a package of mostly nonperishable food, nutrition education and referrals to health and assistance programs. Eligible women, infants and children cannot participate in both WIC and CSFP at the same time.
Commodity Supplemental Food Program
573-751-6269 or Toll Free 800-733-6251
Dress For Success
Dress for Success is designed to promote the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support and the career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life.
dressforsuccess.org
212-532-1922 (worldwide)
Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC)
FQHC's are centers or clinics that provide primary care and other services.
mo-pca.org/
Food Stamps
Missouri Department of Social Services
The food stamp program is designed to promote the general welfare and safeguard the health and well-being of the nation's population by raising the levels of nutrition among low-income households by providing an allotment of food benefits
DSS Food Stamps Program
855-FSD-INFO or 855-373-4636
Free Health Clinics
The Missouri Multi-Cultural Network
A list of free and other low-cost medical clinics in Missouri.
Free Health Clinics
HSE ® Testing Information
Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Many people who did not finish high school have knowledge and skills comparable to people who did graduate. Most employers, colleges and universities, and the military accept a High School Equivalency certificate as being equivalent to a high school diploma. GED tests are a battery of five tests which (when passed) certifies that the taker has high school-level academic skills.
High School Equivalency
Get Help Paying Your Taxes
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service recognizes that many people may be having difficult times financially. There can be a tax impact to events such as job loss, debt forgiveness or tapping a retirement fund. IRS can help you in meeting your tax obligations.
800-829-1040
Health Insurance Premium Payment Program (HIPP)
Missouri Department of Social Services
This program is available to provide assistance with your insurance premiums, co pays and deductible.
DSS HIPP Program
HIPP Flier
573-751-2005
Kansas City Project Hope - Homelessness Prevention Program
Serving Clay County and Kansas City residents
If you or someone you know recently became unemployed or fell behind in rental or utility payments and are facing homelessness as a result, there is hope. While the program cannot pay for late mortgage payments, it can assist you with finding other housing if foreclosure is unavoidable. If you are already homeless, assistance is available to get you into a permanent, suitable place to live. Contact the United Way by dialing 211 or calling 816-474-5112
Library Locator
Institute of Museum and Library Services
Search for a public library
 
List of Missouri Homeless Shelters
A list of homeless shelters in Missouri. Many are emergency shelters, and the recession has caused some to form waiting lists. Please call before going to the shelter.
homelessshelterdirectory.org/missouri.html
Loan Modification Scam Alert
It's a growing problem across the country: Homeowners facing foreclosure are losing their money – and their homes – to loan modification scams. Information is your best defense. If you see the signs of a scam and know the facts, you can protect yourself. Read more about how to spot scams - 6 Things You Should Know.
loanscamalert.org/
888-995-HOPE(4673)
Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
Missouri Department of Social Services
LIHEAP can provide financial assistance to help pay heating bills for eligible Missourians from October to March. Eligibility is based on income, family size, available resources and responsibility for payment of home heating costs.
DSS LIHEAP
LIHEAP Contracted Agencies: Where to send your LIHEAP application
Making Home Affordable (MHA)
Through these federal programs, families can avoid foreclosure and modify their mortgages by allowing qualifying homeowners to reduce or suspend mortgage payments for 12 months or more.
MakingHomeAffordable.gov
888-995-HOPE(4673)
MO HealthNet (Medicaid)
Missouri Department of Social Services
Medicaid is a state-governed program for pregnant woman, children under the age of 19, people age 65 and older, and people who are blind, disabled, or need nursing home care.
mydss.mo.gov/healthcare
573-751-3425
Medicare
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Medicare is for people age 65 and older, people who are permanently disabled and cannot work, or people of any age who have kidney failure or long term kidney disease. Medicare is applied for at the local Social Security office.
www.medicare.gov
800-MEDICARE
Missouri Food Banks
The Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri
A listing of hunger-relief agencies and food pantries to help Missourians in need by county.
http://www.sharefoodbringhope.org/
573-474-1020 or Toll-Free 800-764-3663
Six food banks serve Missouri with a variety of assistance programs through Feeding America whose mission is to feed America's hungry through a nationwide network of member food banks and engage our country in the fight to end hunger. Search for the nearest food bank by zip code.
http://feedingamerica.org/
Toll-Free 800-771-2303
Missouri Housing Development Commission (MHDC)
The MHDC functions as a bank to assist with financing, development and preservation of affordable housing for Missourians.
www.mhdc.com
816-759-6600
Missouri Public Transportation
Missouri Department of Transportation
A list of Missouri rural public transit systems with contact information. They are independently owned and operated, and receive funding through MoDOT.
Missouri Rural Transit Map
Reentry 2030 Program
Missouri became the first state to join the Reentry 2030 national initiative. The Reentry 2030 initiative represents our collective commitment to fostering positive reentry outcomes and creating a pathway to success for individuals transitioning from incarceration to society.
Reentry 2030 Explainer
Saint Louis University Legal Clinic
Saint Louis University
Workers who are appealing the denial of unemployment compensation may be able to receive free legal assistance through the Saint Louis University Legal Clinic. The Clinic can help claimants at all stages of the process.
314-977-2778
Share-A-Ride Carpooling
Missouri Department of Transportation
Looking to carpool to work or school and save some money? Sign up for Share-A-Ride Carpooling.
Carpool Connections
Show Me Healthy Women (SMHW)
SMHW is a free breast and cervical cancer screening program for the state of Missouri.
Show Me Healthy Women
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
SSI is a federal program based on need that provides a monthly cash benefit to people age 65 or older, and, people who are blind or disabled, regardless of age, who have limited income and resources.
https://www.ssa.gov/ssi/
TEACH Missouri
TEACH Missouri is a statewide coalition of school districts, universities, and teaching programs in partnership with the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and TEACH.org.
missouri.teach.org
 
Temporary Cash Assistance
Missouri Department of Social Services
The purpose of the Temporary Assistance Program is to provide assistance to needy families with children so they can be cared for in their own home and to reduce dependency by promoting job preparation, work and marriage.
DSS Temporary Assistance
Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program
VFC helps families of children who may not otherwise have access to vaccines by providing free vaccines to doctors that serve them.
Vaccines for Children Program
WISEWOMAN
Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation (WISEWOMAN) provides heart disease and stroke prevention health screenings and education to the clients of the SMHW program.
WISEWOMAN Program
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
WIC is a supplemental nutrition program providing services to pregnant women, new mothers, infants, and children up to their 5th birthday based on nutritional risk and income eligibility. Primary services provided are health screening, risk assessment, nutrition education and counseling, breastfeeding promotion and referrals to health care. Supplemental food is provided free to participants.
Women, Infants, and Children Program
View flier
1-800-TEL-LINK (1-800-835-5465) or 573-751-6204 or Toll-free 1-800-392-8209