By Rachel Cahill, Visiting Fellow, Public Benefits Sofia Charlot, Guest Author The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 mapped out the legislative end of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) programs, marking the end of SNAP emergency allotments and other relief programs associated with the pandemic. This includes the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) program which...
Tag: P-EBT
Pandemic EBT Extends to Virtual and Homeschooled Students for 2022-2023 School Year
By: Rachel Cahill, Visiting Fellow, Public Benefits Sofia Charlot, Co-author Since the launch of the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) program in the spring of 2020, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS), the Ohio Department of Education (ODE), and thousands of Ohio schools have worked tirelessly to ensure that federal funds help...
New Pandemic EBT changes boost food security for Ohio’s children
Low-income families with children across Ohio are receiving a much-needed boost in food assistance this summer, thanks to the continuation of the Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) program. In June 2022, the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved two plans by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) and the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) to...
Bridging the COVID Cliff: preparing for the Public Health Emergency Unwind, watch webinar
The flexibility and expansions that kept many households afloat during the pandemic will end when the federal Public Health Emergency (PHE) expires, perhaps as soon as July, causing a COVID Cliff. Families still fighting to gain stability will face the end of enhanced Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, the redetermination of the full Medicaid...
Public Health Emergency Unwind: Nutrition
From the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent Public Health Emergency (PHE) it was clear that in order to mitigate the virus’ harm on our public health infrastructure, our economy and life as we knew it, governments, from Congress to City Hall, needed to prioritize strengthening the health and human service safety net. Across...
Ohio among first three states approved to issue Pandemic EBT benefits for missed school meals during 2021-2022 school year
On November 16, 2021, Ohio became one of the first three states in the country to receive federal approval to implement a Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) program during the 2021-2022 school year. Thanks to strong planning and coordination between the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS), the Ohio Department of Education (ODE), and school...
Navigating Pandemic EBT
Ensuring that children received proper nutrition was one of the many challenges that COVID brought. In the 2019-2020 school year, over 710,000 K-12 Ohio students were eligible to receive a free or reduced lunch and breakfast. Meals were provided directly to students when they were physically in school. Once schools closed during the pandemic, many...
An opportunity for Ohio to knock out child hunger this summer
By: Rachel Cahill, Consultant Hope Lane, Public Policy & External Affairs Associate Overview Additional federal resources will be available to Ohio families this summer to cover the rising cost of groceries while school is out. The Center for Community Solutions (Community Solutions) estimates that the Summer Pandemic-EBT program (Summer P-EBT) will provide approximately $400 million...