The State of Arizona will be using a new provider for electronic payment cards (EPCs) for unemployment insurance and child support payments, a press release says.
The Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES) has announced it will be transition EPC payments from Bank of America services to a Way2Go card, as of Sept. 23, 2021.
The new card would be mailed to existing unemployment insurance claimants as well as child support clients.
After that, payments will automatically be deposited to the new Way2Go card.
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claimants who don’t have a EPC but will need one after Sept. 26, 2021 will get a card. But the press release says those who have remaining funds on their Bank of America Visa card will be able to have full access to those funds until Dec. 31, 2021.
Americans have always struggled with financial services, with more than six percent of American households having an unbanked status, and almost 19 percent are underbanked, with households with lower incomes particularly likely to lack bank account access.
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One solution has been offering debit solutions like prepaid cards, which have been used by financial institutions to help appeal to those who are less banked. That includes lower-fee cards which have been used to steer away from issues that have typically made it more difficult to attract lower-income customers, including excessive fees and overdraft charges.
Read more: Prepaid Debit Cards Seen As Safe, Simple Way To Bank Unbanked Americans
PYMNTS, in the July Next-Gen Debit Tracker®, found that 69 percent of users say convenience is the number one issue they consider when using debit.
Download the report: July PYMNTS Nex-Gen Debit Tracker®
There are some companies like remittance provider Remitly utilizing debit as a solution to add more features for immigrants via low-fee debit options. And users will be able to access virtual debit cards while waiting for physical ones in the mail.
With that offering, users will be able to purchase goods and rely less on payday loans or other such services.
