At least 42 million Americans currently rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to buy groceries to feed their families. Food insecurity and unemployment in the U.S continue to rise, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Household Food Insecurity in the United States September 2021 report. In response to this spike, the USDA recently revised the set SNAP benefits, to increase the purchasing power of the plan by 21% for the first time since it was introduced in 1975. As a result, beginning October 1, 2021, maximum benefit amounts will increase for those receiving SNAP, known as CalFresh in California. At the same time, more benefits including Emergency Allotments and Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer, continue to take effect to provide additional grocery purchasing power for Californians.
Since March 2020, Emergency Allotments (EA) have raised each household’s regular monthly CalFresh/SNAP allotment to the maximum allowable allotment based on household size. Effective April 2021, CalFresh Emergency Allotment (EA) means an increase in CalFresh benefits for payments to take effect the following month. The EA increase was changed to include households already receiving the maximum regular CalFresh benefit and every eligible CalFresh holder will receive a minimum. For example: If you were already receiving $234 you can receive $329 ($234 + EA $95) and if you were receiving $139, you can receive $234 ($139 + EA $95). If you receive a $19 minimum regular allotment, you will receive $234 ($19 + EA $215). That is due to the new minimum of $95 in EA. Like previous EA rules, payments are based on a month-to-month approval from the federal government. The USDA's aim is to provide greater equity to households most in need.
In addition, the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) was introduced as part of the U.S. government's response to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on rising food insecurity rates. Through P-EBT, eligible school children receive temporary emergency nutrition benefits loaded on EBT cards, used to purchase food. This applies to children who would have received free or reduced-priced meals (under the National School Lunch Act) and whose schooling was switched to online, as well as for young children (aged 0-5) whose household received CalFresh since October 2020. P-EBT payments do not impact EA payments. Eligible children, receive a maximum of $123 per month from Oct. 2020 to May 2021 and for the Summer P-EBT (June 2021-Aug. 2021) $375 will be loaded onto their card by Dec. 2021. According to the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), already $500 million has been used by participants to purchase groceries. All 650,000 EBT 2.0 cards for the young children category (aged 0-5 in a CalFresh household) were mailed out. By end of September 2021, 1.5 million cards were mailed to Californian children in the school-aged category, and there are still more to be mailed. Cards are being mailed in alphabetical order using the first name of the child.
With all these benefits on hand, at least 30% of LA residents are unaware they can receive CalFresh to buy nutritious groceries. CalFresh benefits provide dollars via an EBT debit card to purchase groceries and fresh produce of your choice online and in-store at participating grocery stores (including Albertsons, Vons, Safeway, Walmart, and Amazon) and farmers’ markets. Household income and size determine how much CalFresh dollars you receive. However, certain expenses, including your rent, childcare costs, and utility expenses such as gas and electric bills are deducted from household income to help you qualify for CalFresh and increase your benefits.
Help Me Help You provides free CalFresh enrollment assistance. Contact us today on (562) 612 5001, to access your CalFresh benefits and enjoy purchasing nutritious groceries the whole family will enjoy. For important updates to the P-EBT payments visit www.helpmehelpu.org/calfresh
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