NEW CASTLE (Sept. 28, 2020) – Delaware’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will issue another round of monthly emergency food benefits to eligible participants as part of the federal response to the coronavirus.

The emergency benefits for September will be released Sept. 29 and will be automatically loaded to recipients’ SNAP Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards for use starting Sept. 30.

Under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act of 2020, which was signed into law in March, the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) has issued emergency benefits each month to any household not already receiving the maximum monthly SNAP benefit. SNAP households that already receive the maximum monthly benefit will not receive additional funds.

The emergency benefits will allow the household’s monthly allotment to increase to the maximum amount for a household of that size, as follows:

SNAP households already received their regular September benefits on the usual issuance dates.

“The coronavirus remains a threat in Delaware, and the economic impact of COVID-19 continues to challenge families’ ability to meet their food and nutritional needs,” said DHSS

Secretary Molly Magarik. “As long as we remain under a state of emergency, we will welcome additional financial help for Delawareans trying to feed themselves and their families.”

An estimated 36,000 households will be eligible to receive the emergency allotment in September, and about $6.9 million in emergency benefits will be issued for the month.

More than 120,000 Delawareans receive SNAP benefits. Individuals may apply for SNAP at https://assist.dhss.delaware.gov/ or 1-866-843-7212.

Existing clients may receive these additional benefits to support food needs

NEW CASTLE (Aug. 27, 2020) – Emergency benefits will be issued to participants of Delaware’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for August as part of the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act of 2020.

Under this federal act signed into law in March, the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) issues emergency benefits each month to any household not already receiving the maximum monthly SNAP benefit. SNAP households that already receive the maximum monthly benefit will not receive additional funds.

[Read the Spanish Version here]

The emergency benefits for August will be released Aug. 30 and will be automatically loaded to recipients’ SNAP Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards for use starting Aug. 31. The emergency benefits will allow the household’s monthly allotment to increase to the maximum amount for a household of that size, as follows:

SNAP households already received their regular August benefits on the usual issuance dates.

Many SNAP households in Delaware have received emergency monthly benefits since March. “Delaware is making progress in slowing the spread of the coronavirus, but many families continue to struggle to meet their food and nutritional needs because of the ongoing economic impact of COVID-19,” said Molly Magarik, Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Services. “This additional assistance provides much-needed relief for Delawareans who worry about going hungry.”

More than 120,000 Delawareans receive SNAP benefits. The average size of a SNAP household in Delaware is 2.04 individuals and the average monthly benefit amount is $233. Individuals seeking to apply for SNAP benefits in Delaware may apply online through https://assist.dhss.delaware.gov/ or by phone at 1-866-843-7212.

NEW CASTLE (May 5, 2020) – On May 1, the Division of Social Services was approved by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to operate Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT), a new program authorized by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act that provides assistance to families with children who are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals.

The P-EBT program provides a supplemental food-purchasing benefit to current Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) households and a new EBT benefit to other eligible households to offset the cost of meals that would have otherwise been available at school.

Under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, states may submit a plan to the Secretary of Agriculture for providing P-EBT benefits to SNAP and non-SNAP households with children who have temporarily lost access to free or reduced-price school meals due to pandemic-related school closures. State agencies may operate P-EBT when a school is closed for at least five consecutive days during a public health emergency designation during which the school would otherwise be in session.

Gov. John Carney declared a State of Emergency on March 13, all Delaware schools were closed as of March 16, and Gov. Carney announced April 24 that schools would remain closed through the end of the school year. This closure will result in an average total of 65 canceled school days.

For the 2019-2020 school year, Delaware has approximately 100,000 children eligible for free or reduced-priced school meals who are now eligible to receive P-EBT benefits. The P-EBT benefits will be issued as a supplement to SNAP households on their existing EBT cards and to non-SNAP households on a new EBT card along with details on how to use the card. Households that are not receiving SNAP will automatically receive one P-EBT card in the mail for all eligible children in their household.

“The Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer program is an important way for the Department of Health and Social Services to ensure that children will get the nutrition they need, especially with schools closed for the remainder of the school year,” said DHSS Secretary Dr. Kara Odom Walker, a practicing family physician. “We are grateful for the approval of Delaware’s program by the USDA.”

Delaware will follow the P-EBT benefit guidance provided by the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service. The P-EBT benefit amount is equal to the federal reimbursement rate for breakfast and lunch at the rate of $5.70 per child, per canceled school day. Eligible households will receive P-EBT benefits as follows:

The implementation of P-EBT in Delaware helps to keep families healthy and children fed during this national emergency. Households will receive written notification regarding P-EBT benefits.

NEW CASTLE (Jan. 14, 2019) – Because of the partial federal government shutdown, Delaware will join other states in issuing food benefits early for February, loading them onto clients’ Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards on or before Jan. 20.

The more than 136,000 Delawareans who are clients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will receive their February benefits by Sunday, Jan. 20, said Ray Fitzgerald, director of the Department of Health and Social Services’ Division of Social Services (DSS), which manages the food benefit program in

Delaware. DSS typically staggers food benefits between the second and the 22nd days of the month.

“To be clear, these early food benefits are not additional or bonus benefits,” said Dr. Kara Odom Walker, DHSS Cabinet Secretary. “Because clients will have two months’ worth of food dollars on their EBT cards this month, we urge them to plan and budget wisely. It is important for them to use January benefits in January, and February’s benefits in February. Our hope is to be back on the regular schedule beginning in March.”

Clients will be notified of the early issuance through letters to each household, contacts through retail outlets and community partners, social media posts, and other means.

Fitzgerald said DSS is working with grocery and convenience stores to alert them of the early issuance of February benefits so they can stock additional food items and increase staffing as needed. The division also is working to get out the message to community partners, including legislators, State Service Centers, the Food Bank of Delaware, senior centers, places of worship and other organizations.

The average household benefit in Delaware is $238 per month, which makes the total disbursement about $15.8 million monthly. The majority of SNAP clients are children, seniors and people with disabilities.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said it is able to make the payments for February based on a provision in the short-term continuing resolution that kept several federal agencies funded through Dec. 21.

Clients in Delaware who have questions about the balances on their EBT cards can check them onlineat ConnectEBT.com or call Conduent Customer S

ervice at 1-800-526-9099.

NEW CASTLE (June 29, 2017) – Electronic benefit cards with access to food benefits are arriving for 25,000 students through the Department of Health and Social Services’ Summer EBT Program. The program offers a way to support families in ensuring that their children have dependable access to food during the summer months.

The Summer EBT Program helps families buy healthy food during the summer for children who currently receive free or reduced-price meals at school. The food benefits are loaded on an electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card for use during summer months when free or reduced-price meals through the school are not available. This is the fifth year that Delaware has been awarded a federal grant through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to operate the program. This year’s grant is for $2.25 million.

Collaborating with the Delaware Department of Education, this initiative involves students in school districts from across the state in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. In 2012, the first year of the summer program, about 4,000 students in the Red Clay, Colonial, Christina and Appoquinimink school districts were served. The program has expanded each year since then.

Letters to parents, notifying them of their children’s eligibility for the program, already have been sent. To be eligible, families must have participated in the Summer EBT Program in 2015 or 2016.

“The Summer EBT Program provides another way to make sure that eligible students get enough to eat during the summer months,” said Gov. John Carney, whose wife, First Lady Tracey Quillen Carney, is leading a Delaware team studying how Virginia has leveraged public-private partnerships to ensure school-age children have regular access to healthy meals. “It’s critical that young people have access to quality food year-round, so they remain healthy and ready to learn when school begins again in the fall.”

In 2016 in Delaware, more than 98,000 children received free or reduced-price lunch, including tens of thousands who relied on school nutrition programs as their primary source of healthy meals. About 14.8 percent of Delaware’s children are classified as food insecure, which means they don’t always know where they will find their next meal. These problems are intensified when schools let out for the summer.

Families who are chosen for the project receive up $30 per month for each school-age child in the home. Electronic benefit transfer cards are being mailed to parents through the first week in July. No matter when parents receive the cards, they will receive benefits for June, July and August. The cards are valid through Aug. 28. Users can buy non-cooked foods from merchants who accept food benefits. The cards cannot be used at fast-food stores or restaurants.

“As a family physician, I have seen what hunger does to children physically, emotionally and mentally,” said DHSS Secretary Dr. Kara Odom Walker. “The Summer EBT Program is an effective way to make sure that children get the access to food during the summer months that they need. We’re proud to join with the Department of Education in providing this much-needed support to families across our state.”

“USDA helps Delaware families afford fresh food throughout the year, and this program helps bridge the gap between the school year when children receive nutritious school meals and summer breaks when meals may be harder to come by,” Sen. Tom Carper said. “This important federal investment goes a long way to help our children learn and thrive – not only in the classroom, but throughout their everyday lives. I encourage anyone who knows a child or family in need to tell them about this important program so that we can decrease the number of young men and women who aren’t sure they’ll always be able to find a healthy meal this summer.”

“I thank the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services and Delaware Department of Education and the support of the USDA for their continued work to ensure that all children across our state are able to live a happy and healthy life,” Sen. Chris Coons said. “Access to good nutrition is a critical part of a child’s educational and physical development, and I am pleased the Summer EBT Program has continued and will help children receive the nutrients they need during the summer months.”

“The unfortunate truth is that too many of our children are unsure where their next meal is going to come from, and that is an issue that is further exacerbated during the summer months,” U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester said. “It’s critical we continue to support this program and ensure that families and children alike have the opportunity to purchase nutritious foods that prepare them to succeed, and I thank the state for their work and attention on this issue.”

In addition to Delaware, USDA awarded Summer EBT grants for summer 2017 to eight other states and tribal nations that operated demonstration projects in 2016: Connecticut, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, Oregon, Virginia, and the Chickasaw and Cherokee nations. USDA also awarded Summer EBT grants to two new applicants, Tennessee and Texas, which will operate demonstration projects in summer 2018. They are the first states to launch new Summer EBT demonstration projects since 2012, allowing USDA and the states to test strategies for building Summer EBT infrastructure and engaging local communities.

USDA studies have found that insufficient nutrition may hinder the ability of children to function normally. Potential problems include: increased risk for chronic health conditions such as anemia and asthma; increased risk for being hospitalized; more frequent instances of oral health problems; poorer physical quality of life, which may prevent them from fully engaging in daily activities; greater risk of truancy and school tardiness during the school year; or such behavior problems as fighting, hyperactivity, aggression, anxiety, mood swings, and bullying.

For more information about Delaware’s Summer EBT Program for Children, contact Ruth Campbell with DHSS’ Division of Social Services at 302-424-7287.

                                                         -30-

Delaware Health and Social Services is committed to improving the quality of the lives of Delaware’s citizens by promoting health and well-being, fostering self-sufficiency, and protecting vulnerable populations.