SNAP
A new federal benefit called “Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer” (P-EBT) offers $285 in grocery assistance per child for kids who get free and reduced-price meals during the school year.
But, with the final application deadline less than a week away, about 298,000 eligible students are not connected with the benefit, about 40% of the total who could receive it.… Read more...
Louisiana’s surging rates of unemployment and food insecurity led to a massive increase in applications for SNAP (formerly, Food Stamps), beginning in mid-March, when the state’s stay at home order went into effect. On April 13, Louisiana’s Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) faced a backlog of over 95,000 unprocessed applications submitted since the beginning of February.… Read more...
The mass unemployment caused by the coronavirus pandemic has led to an unprecedented surge in applications for food assistance, creating a massive backlog for the state agency charged with processing the requests.
More than 87,000 food assistance applications submitted to the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) since coronavirus-related business closures began on March 14 have not yet been processed, according to data supplied by the agency. … Read more...