Chesterfield social services reports higher caseloads, readies contingency plans after state SNAP and Medicaid rule changes

Angie Grant, chair of the Chesterfield-Colonial Heights Department of Social Services board, and Kiva Rogers, director of the Chesterfield County Department of Social Services, updated the Board of Supervisors on workforce, workload and program changes at a work session on Oct. 1, 2025.

The presentation highlighted larger caseloads in several areas, steps the department is taking to stabilize its workforce, and contingency planning after recent federal and state changes to SNAP and Medicaid rules. "This plan really is more than just a document. It is a road map that we're using to help guide the department," Rogers said, describing a strategic plan launched in January that centers on leadership, service experience, collaboration and data.

Why it matters: county leaders and social-service staff said the changes could increase local administrative burdens and require new county-level spending while the department manages higher demand for protective services and foster-care placements. Rogers said Chesterfield has nearly 15,000 SNAP benefit cases — equal to about 31,305 individual recipients — and that September SNAP disbursements totaled $5,868,278 for the county.

Rogers told supervisors the department saw a 23% increase in adult protective-services investigations and a 16% rise in children entering the department's legal custody during the year. She also reported a 10% reduction in Medicaid recipients in fiscal…