Wolf Administration Receives $224 Million in Food Assistance for Pennsylvania Families with Young Children
04/27/2021
Harrisburg, PA - The Wolf Administration has received approval from the Food and Nutrition Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to extend Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) benefit eligibility to families of Pennsylvania SNAP eligible children who are child care aged. This federally-funded program helps families cover the cost of breakfasts and lunches for their children and is designed to bridge the gap left by child care centers closing and to help families who may have strained resources due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic downturn has stretched thousands of families to a breaking point, so we are incredibly grateful that the USDA will allow us to provide some relief and offer more food security to SNAP families with children who are child care aged,” said DHS Acting Secretary Meg Snead. “G
USA TODAY
WASHINGTON – Since taking office, President Joe Biden has signed 40 executive orders addressing issues spanning the ongoing coronavirus pandemic to international affairs, labor and voting rights and the environment.
While many of the orders either reversed the actions of former President Donald Trump, or made administrative changes he d promised on the campaign trail, others have had more consequential impacts.
Many orders signed in his first hours as president overturned the previous administration. With those, he:
Prohibited workplace discrimination in the federal government based on sexual orientation and gender identity;
Revoked Trump s 2017 Interior Enforcement Executive Order, which broadened the categories of undocumented immigrants subject for removal, restarted the Secure Communities program and supported the federal 287(g) deportation program;
For the newly food insecure, help that preserves dignity
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Odessa Davis is used to helping families as a public school teacher and summer camp director in Maryland’s Montgomery County. But when the pandemic forced camps to close, the single mother realized her own family was in need. So she swallowed her pride and sought help to feed her 11-year-old son.
Ms. Davis is one of many Americans who struggled to put food on the table for the first time during the past year. As job losses skyrocketed, the number of Americans facing food insecurity reached 265 million in 2020, according to a Northwestern University estimate.
Dive Brief:
Publix is now accepting online Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) payments for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants chainwide through Instacart, the e-commerce provider announced on Thursday.
Instacart is also powering EBT SNAP online payments for Save Mart’s banners in California and Nevada, including Save Mart, Lucky California, Lucky and FoodMaxx, along with Price Chopper/Market 32 stores in New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Vermont.
The addition of the three retailers grows the list of grocers offering SNAP online through Instacart by more than 1,500 stores across 15 states. The expansion is arriving as SNAP online gains traction in the grocery industry.
Food security has been a major focus of the American Rescue Plan Act, which provided more than $12 billion in new nutrition assistance overall. That included a 15% increase in SNAP benefits, or $1.1 billion per month in additional benefits for about 41 million participants through September.
An additional nearly $900 million was funneled into the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, including a temporary increase in fruit and vegetable vouchers to $35 per month.
Where can I use the Double SNAP program?
ASAP Farmers Market, 340 Victoria Road, Saturday, 9 a.m.-noon.
East Asheville Tailgate Market, 954 Tunnel Road, Friday, 3-6 p.m.
Enka-Candler Tailgate Market, 1465 Sand Hill Road, Thursday, 3:30-6:30 p.m. (Opens May 6.)