Financial Support Services
Supporting the journey towards financial stability through collaboration, information, and assistance.
Medicare Counseling (SHIP)
Medicare beneficiaries frequently have questions about benefits, claims, and supplement policies such as Medigap and Medicare Advantage plans. The State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) provides free help to Essex County Medicare beneficiaries who have problems with, or questions about their health insurance.
Volunteer counselors, trained in areas of health insurance coverage and benefits that affect Medicare beneficiaries, provide information and assistance for dealing with claims and in evaluating health insurance options. Counselors also help low-income Medicare beneficiaries apply for Extra Help, prescription assistance, and Low-Income Subsidy programs.
Volunteer counselors do not provide legal advice, sell, recommend, or endorse any specific insurance product, agent, insurance company, or plan. They provide information and assistance so that Medicare beneficiaries can make their own decisions.
Counseling is free of charge and provided virtually via phone or Zoom or in easy to access community sites, such as libraries and community centers.
To speak with a Medicare Counselor, contact our Helpline at (973) 637-1717 or email medicarehelp@jfsmetrowest.org.
SHIP is a statewide program administered in Essex County by JFS MetroWest and RSVP. It is funded by the New Jersey Department of Human Services with financial assistance through a grant from the U.S. Administration for Community Living.
Safety Net Services
We will work with you to understand your financial distress. Through a process of assessment, budgeting, and referrals to community resources, JFSMW staff will help you work towards greater financial sustainability. During this process, financial assistance may be offered.
The JFS Healthcare Emergency Relief Fund and the JFS Safety Net Fund provide eligible JFSMW clients with access to emergency assistance. The Safety Net Fund is supported in part by JFSMW donors and in part through the Greater Newark Holiday Fund, an annual campaign administered by the Star Ledger.
Call (973) 765-9050 for more information.
Hebrew Free Loan
Hebrew Free Loan of NJ provides interest free loans to members of the Jewish Community who reside in the areas covered by the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest, Jewish Federation of the Heart of New Jersey, and Bergen and Passaic counties. Loans are provided for many purposes, except for student loans. Examples of typical loans are:
- Medical Expenses
- Debt Consolidation
- Home Improvement or Repair
- Infertility Issues
- Starting or Expanding a Business
Borrowers must have the potential to repay the loan with repayment done through automatic bank withdrawal (ACH). Certain loans require one or two endorsers, and the endorser must live in New Jersey. The endorser becomes responsible for the loan repayment in the event the borrower cannot meet his/her obligation.
Hebrew Free Loan of New Jersey holds to the highest standard of confidentiality.
For more information go to Hebrewfreeloanofnj.org or call (973) 637-1739 if you reside in the Greater MetroWest area; Monmouth County residents can call (732) 774-6886; Middlesex County residents can call (732) 777-1940.
