Chase Visa Cards in Idaho Program

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to issue reloadable Visa debit cards for an Idaho program for child support recipients, the state's Department of Health and Welfare said Monday.

The New York company will issue the Idaho Family Support Card, which will run on the Visa Inc. network and will replace a JPMorgan Chase debit card that only runs on the Quest electronic benefits transfer network. The state has begun distributing the new card to parents who receive regular support payments and prefer to have the direct deposits linked to a prepaid card instead of a bank account.

Idaho officials said the switch will save the state money and increase acceptance for cardholders.

"The Family Support Card will be accepted anywhere Visa is accepted, much more widely than the Idaho Quest Card," Orie Garcia, the manager of the department's Electronic Benefits Program, said in a press release. "This new business process also will save an estimated $250,000 a year, which is a real plus for the state."

Holders of the new card will be charged fees for using it at automated teller machines, but not for receiving cash back at the point of sale. Child support payments, which took one business day to be deposited on to the Quest cards, will take an additional business day to be deposited on to the new cards. The state will not transfer funds from the Quest cards to the Visa cards.

The new cards have already been distributed to about 21,000 people, and Idaho will begin depositing child support payments into their accounts Feb. 2.

The state will continue distributing the Quest card to participants in public assistance programs, including food stamps and cash assistance.

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