Emergency purchase card plan approved to help feed thousands of Missouri families

U.S. Department of Agriculture photo

ALERT: Your family may qualify for the P-EBT purchase card for food

The deadline for application is June 30

Apply online at: https://www.emergencymealsurvey.com/MO

Or download the application: https://dese.mo.gov/sites/default/files/P-EBT-Application.pdf

• Scan and email a completed application to FoodandNutritionServices@dese.mo.gov

• Or mail completed application to: DESE Food and Nutrition Services 205 Jefferson Street P.O. Box 480 Jefferson City, MO 65102

Missouri joined 30 other states whose plans have been approved to distribute food purchase cards to all families that qualified for free or reduced-price meals during the school year to help strengthen home nutrition while schools are out.

The Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer program (P-EBT) expands the EBT program that the U.S. Department of Agriculture uses to distribute food stamp benefits in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

That means all of the 458,000 children in households that qualify for school meal programs will now have access to food stamp benefits retroactively for March, April and May while their schools were out of session.

Eligible children can receive benefits of $57 for March, $125 for April and $120 for May, totaling $302 per child.

Some families already have the EBT purchase cards. Many will need to apply using information the state said will be coming to families in letters next week from their home school districts.

Households that were already receiving SNAP benefits in March will see the benefits added to their EBT cards automatically and do not need to apply, covering nearly 200,000 students.

But the onus is now on the state and school communities to inform newly eligible families and provide them EBT cards to access these benefits.

The Missouri Department of Social Services is collaborating with school districts across the state to contact newly eligible families so they can apply to receive the P-EBT purchase card. More than 260,000 children may be added to the EBT system.

“With Missouri children now learning in their homes, many families are experiencing unplanned increases in household food costs,” Jennifer Tidball, Acting Director, Department of Social Services, said in a prepared statement.

“I urge families who believe they may qualify and didn’t receive March SNAP benefits to apply for the P-EBT benefit,” she said.

The partnership between DSS and the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education is key in helping the local school districts connect their families to the benefits.

“We know how important school meals are to so many Missouri families,” said Commissioner of Education Margie Vandeven. “While public schools across the state have served over 5.4 million meals to students while school buildings have been closed, we know there is a need for more assistance and our team stands ready to make that happen.”

This P-EBT program will provide benefits to families previously not part of the EBT program, including:

• All families who qualify for free or reduced-price (FRL) lunches but were not in the SNAP program.

• Families in districts or schools that qualify for universal free lunch benefits, even if they don’t personally meet the standard for FRL.

Families can continue to participate in their school district’s food distribution efforts while receiving the new P-EBT benefits.

Households may complete the application sent from the School District online through PrimeroEdge or mail the paper application by June 30 to DESE, Food and Nutrition Services. DESE will verify the student’s eligibility for the free or reduced price school meal program and will send all applications to the DSS, Family Support Division (FSD). FSD will mail an EBT card with the P-EBT benefit and instructions on its use to approved applicants.

Applicants who are not approved will receive a letter with contact information, if the citizen disagrees with the decision. For more information on the EBT card, go to https://mydss.mo.gov/covid-food-stamp-info.

The USDA required states as part of their application process to have a plan for informing eligible families and distributing the cards.

During the pandemic, the USDA is automatically allowing food-stamp-eligible families to receive the maximum amount of benefits available according to household size — $646 a month for a household of four. The distribution of maximum benefits has now been extended through June.

The (P-EBT) acts like a debit card that families can use at stores that participate in the program, which includes most grocery stores. Missouri recently announced that EBT cards can now be used for online purchases with Walmart and Amazon.