On October 30, 2023, Sacramento County joins other California counties and transitions to a new public assistance benefits system, California Statewide Automated Welfare System (CalSAWS).
CalSAWS replaces the existing welfare eligibility system CalWIN. With this change, MyBenefits CalWIN (myBCW) customer web portal will be replaced with a new and improved online portal, BenefitsCal that provides one unified experience for all Californians. BenefitsCal will make it easier than ever to apply for benefits online, upload documents, report changes, renew benefits, view case details, sign up for alerts, and more.
Now customers can apply for a variety of benefits on the same website:
- Cash assistance
- Food benefits
- Health Care
To align with the adoption of the new technology, the Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance will replace the current phone numbers for customers with a toll-free 1-800 number. Effective Monday, October 30, 2023 the current phone numbers (916) 874-3100 and (209) 744-0499 will be replaced by the new 1-800-560-0976 number.
To accommodate the transition, all customer service centers and phone lines will be closed on Friday, October 27. Customers may continue to use MyBCW until October 26, 5 p.m.. The new portal BenefitsCal becomes available on Monday, October 30 at 6 a,m,. Households interested in applying for public assistance benefits during the downtime period can:
- Visit www.GetCalFresh.org for CalFresh benefits
- Visit www.coveredca.com for Medi-Cal benefits
Customers who may have started an application in the old system should plan to finish by Thursday, October 26, or will need to begin a new application after creating an account in BenefitsCal starting Monday, October 30, 2023. Thank you for your patience as we transition to the new systems.