20 Web sites for government services at your fingertips
June 24, 2000
Web posted at: 11:05 a.m. EDT (1505 GMT)
Get tips on choosing a health plan, a doctor, a course of treatment or a long-term care facility from the Department of Health and Human Service's Healthfinder service at www.healthfinder.gov. Healthfinder also provides information on the latest health research, different illnesses and many medical resources. Last year it had more than 4.5 million visitors.
Teachers, parents and students can check out lessons and educational materials on any topic at the Department of Education's new "Gateway to Educational Materials" at www.thegateway.org. The Gateway connects users to over 140 Web sites.
Start your own business with help from the Small Business Administration at www.sba.gov. The site offers loans and outreach initiatives for women and minority-owned businesses. It also provides e-mail counseling and mentoring as well as a database of federal, state and private contracts available to small firms.
Find out about the drinking water quality, toxic and air releases and hazardous waste in your neighborhood by signing on to the Environmental Protection Agency's "Enviromapper" site at www.epa.gov. You can also find out about water discharge permits and Superfund sites.
Never shy of statistics, the government has a wealth of calculations available at "FedStats" at www.fedstats.gov. The site is a single point of entry to 40 federal statistical programs.
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., at www.pbgc.gov, helps people find missing pensions. It also features an online search directory that allows you to find benefits that might be owed to you.
Learn how to get health insurance for your children through the Children's Health Insurance Program at www.insurekidsnow.gov. The program's Web page offers state-specific information on who is eligible and how to enroll.
Start planning for retirement by computing your estimated Social Security benefits online at the Social Security Administration's site at www.ssa.gov. The administration's home page also provides information on obtaining a Social Security number as well as information for employers on reporting earnings.
Check what educational resources are available by checking out the "Federal Resources for Academic Excellence" at www.ed.gov/free. Agencies from throughout the government joined forces to pool the information. Subjects range from an architectural tour of the National Gallery of Art's East Building to a mutual fund cost calculator from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Buy your first home with help from the Department of Housing and Urban Development at www.hud.gov. HUD's Web page provides a comprehensive homebuyer's kit, complete with searchable databases of HUD homes for sale, condominiums and developments
Financial aid questions may be answered by "Access America for Students" at www.students.gov, which contains tips on how to get aid or career information and pay student loans.
Cooks might want to check out the Department of Agriculture's tips on food safety at www.foodsafety.gov. Information includes the proper cooking temperature for food as well as ways to see if your kitchen is safe from food-borne illnesses.
Scout out fuel-efficient cars with help from the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency at www.fueleconomy.gov/feg.
Kids, parents and coaches can get tips from the U.S. Women's Soccer Team on good reasons not to smoke on the "Smoke-Free Kids" Web site at www.smokefree.gov.
Investors curious about online trading can learn how to invest wisely and avoid fraud on the Internet from the Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov.
Travelers can check for weather-related delays using the Federal Aviation Adminisration's Web site at www.faa.gov. Since its launch in April, the site has received almost one million visitors.
Get help after a natural disaster from the Federal Emergency Management Agency at www.fema.gov. FEMA offers information about where to find temporary shelters, crisis counseling or legal counseling. The agency also provides help in applying for assistance to rebuild your home.
Locate the nearest Veterans Medical Center by going to the Department of Veterans Affairs site at www.va.gov. The site also can tell you the benefits for which you might be eligible.
Learn about your Medicare benefits, get information about nursing homes in your area or report suspected Medicare fraud through the Health Care Financing Administration's Web page at www.hcfa.gov. The agency also posts a version of the Medicare & You 2000 handbook.
Read about how you can pay back student loans and volunteer in your community through the Corporation for National Service at www.cns.gov.
Source: U.S. government
| |
|
![[CNN Money]](http://i.cnn.net/cnn/images/main/fn.logo.newsnet.gif){kind=logo}
![[SI.com]](http://i.cnn.net/cnn/images/main/si.logo.gif){kind=logo}
(
