USDA is committed to providing nutrition assistance to hard-hit families across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic. In support of President Biden’s call to action on hunger, USDA announced that it is increasing the Pandemic EBT benefit by approximately 15 percent, providing more money for low-income families and millions of children missing meals due to school and child care closures.
The purpose of this memorandum is to advise state agencies on the steps the Food and Nutrition Service will take to monitor and engage state agencies with poor SNAP initial application processing timeliness rates.
This policy memorandum provides guidance on data sharing activities that support targeted outreach and streamlined certification processes aimed at increasing WIC participation and retention. It expresses USDA FNS support of data sharing, provides an overview of data sharing relevant to WIC, summarizes WIC program guidance on sharing confidential WIC participant data, and lays the groundwork for future guidance and resources to help WIC state agencies expand outreach and streamline the
certification process.
USDA has issued guidance to states in implementing FFCRA of 2020 which provides for the issuance of emergency allotments based on a public health emergency declaration by the Secretary of HHS under the Public Health Service Act related to an outbreak of COVID-19 when a state has also issued an emergency or disaster declaration.
FNS is providing a comprehensive list of SNAP resource materials and policy memos to equip state agencies with key information to prepare for the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency.
To help SNAP state agencies prepare for the lifting of the COVID-19 federal public health emergency (PHE) declaration on May 11, 2023, FNS is sharing the enclosed table summarizing the timelines for ending PHE flexibilities. These flexibilities include waivers of SNAP regulations, adjustments of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, temporary changes to eligibility criteria for ABAWDs and students, and the issuance of EAs during the PHE.
As part of the WIC innovation and modernization efforts to be funded under ARPA, FNS will fund non-competitive grants to WIC State agencies to complete projects aimed at improving the WIC shopping experience, which is a well-documented pain point for WIC participants. The primary goal of funded projects must be to improve the shopping experience, as evidenced by increasing the redemption of WIC benefits, improving customer satisfaction, and/or improving participant access to vendors, including for underserved communities and individuals.
USDA is committed to providing nutrition assistance to hard-hit families across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic. In support of President Biden’s call to action on hunger, USDA announced that it is increasing the Pandemic EBT benefit by approximately 15 percent, providing more money for low-income families and millions of children missing meals due to school and child care closures.
This letter is in response to correspondence from WIC state agencies using offline Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) technology or paper food instruments, and requesting program flexibility from the WIC program federal requirements as a result of the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the 2022 Abbott recall of certain powder infant formula, exempt infant formula, and WIC-eligible nutritionals on the nationwide supply chain leading to both periodic location- and product-based WIC infant formula and exempt infant formula shortages.
Provides information on how states can request to implement or extend certain COVID-19 administrative flexibilities beginning on Jan. 1, 2022.