Pandemic benefits for children under 6 approved | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Sam Woods
May 24, 2022
Leer en español: Aprueban beneficios por pandemia para niños menores de 6 años
Residents in households that receive FoodShare and who miss meals because their child care facility closed or is operating with reduced attendance or hours will receive money on their QUEST card to be spent on groceries.
The program – Pre-6 Pandemic EBT or Pre-6 P-EBT – has been approved for the 2021-’22 school year by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service. FoodShare Wisconsin is the state’s food program for low-income households.
As of Sept. 1, 2021, a parent is eligible to receive Pre-6 P-EBT for each child 6 years old or younger who meets the following criteria from September 2021 through June 2022:
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According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, which administers the program, parents who are eligible to receive benefits from September 2021 to June 2022 should expect to receive a letter in the mail notifying them of the amount they will receive in mid-July.
This program is technically different from a similar school-age P-EBT program for children who are enrolled in the National School Lunch Program but who missed school meals for at least five consecutive days due to learning virtually or because they could not attend school due to a COVID-19 reason.
This Pre-6 P-EBT program is geared toward filling a similar gap for children 6 and younger.
Benefits will arrive on the parent’s QUEST card, the same card FoodShare is loaded onto.
If parents believe that they are eligible for more than their letter says, they can email PEBTsupport@wisconsindhs.gov or call 1-833-431-2224. However, email is preferred so there is documentation of your request.
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services estimated that the program will cost about $30 million and reach 90,500 children, according to its proposal to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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