This is a free calculator for people in Hawaiʻi who receive SNAP, or think they might qualify. It does the same arithmetic the Department of Human Services does, and shows every step of it.
When Hawaiʻi tells you your SNAP benefit, it gives you your allowable medical deduction as a single figure — one number, with nothing behind it. It does not say what was counted, or what was left out. If it is wrong, there is no way to tell from the notice, and no way to know which part to query.
The rules themselves are not secret. They have been public for decades, in 7 CFR 273.9 and 273.10. But they are written for administrators, they run to thousands of words, and nobody hands them to you at the counter. So the number arrives, and you accept it, because what else is there to do.
This site was built by a Honolulu household that spent a long time trying to find out what was inside that number, and eventually worked it out. The calculator is the part worth passing on.
If your household includes someone 60 or older, or disabled, you can deduct their medical costs above $35 a month — and that deduction is far wider than premiums. Getting to appointments. Co-pays and deductibles. Dentures, glasses, hearing aid batteries. An attendant. The cost of keeping a service animal, food included, which is named in the regulation itself.
Most households claim a Medicare premium and stop, because a premium is the only medical cost that arrives looking like a bill you are supposed to do something with. The full list is here.
It is not legal advice, it is not a benefits application, and it is not a decision. Only the Hawaiʻi Department of Human Services can determine your benefit. If your figures differ from theirs, that is a reason to ask a specific question in writing — which line do you disagree with, and why — not a reason to assume anybody has done anything wrong.
If you are unhappy with a decision, you have the right to a fair hearing. If you need help, Legal Aid Society of Hawaiʻi and your local kūpuna and community services can assist, and there is no charge for a hearing.