Lawmakers rush to block $2M lottery winner getting food stamps

Michigan officials and legislators are moving quickly to change the rules that made it possible for the winner of a $2 million lottery to keep receiving food stamps, the Detroit Free Press reports.

Department of Human Services officials confirmed that they had told Leroy Fick, 59, that he could continue to receive aid because he took his Make Me Rich earnings in a lump sum and still met the earned income threshold for food assistance.

WNEM-TV in Saginaw broke the story earlier this week after getting a tip from a resident who says Fick was using a food stamp debit card.

Fick, of Auburn, Mich., tells the TV station that he feels justified in using food stamps because the government took more than half of his winnings in taxes.

"If you're going to ... try to make me feel bad, you aren't going to do it. It ain't going to happen," he tells WNEM reporter Bill Walsh.

Republican state Sen. John Moolenaar is now calling for legislation requiring lottery officials to submit the Social Security numbers of jackpot winners to DHS and Medicaid officials within seven days, The Detroit News reports.

The bill would also call for the DHS to remove jackpot winners from all public assistance programs, the News reports.

"It's just awful," Democratic lawmaker Charles Brunner says, the Free Press reports. "It's not just a glitch; it's a gaping loophole. It's something we've got to fix."