Eligible DE Families to Receive Emergency Food Assistance Benefits in 2 Distributions
Eligible Delaware households will receive emergency food assistance benefits under the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) program to cover the summer period when children are on break and not receiving meals at school. DHSS and the Delaware Department of Education will begin issuing the Summer P-EBT benefits this month – the benefit will be split into two separate issuances – on August 5th and September 2nd. Eligible households will receive written notification in the mail regarding the Summer P-EBT benefit. P-EBT eligibility is based on information received from Delaware schools.
The following children are eligible for the Summer P-EBT benefit:
- Children who were eligible for free or reduced-price school meals during the last month of the 2021-2022 school year. This includes children who graduated at the end of the 2021-2022 school year.
- Children who are determined newly eligible for free or reduced-price school meals during this summer and were enrolled in a Delaware school during the 2021-2022 school year. Households that submit a meal application to their school on or before Aug. 26, 2022, and are approved will qualify for Summer P-EBT as long as the child was enrolled in the school for the 2021-2022 school year.
- Children under age 6 who are part of a household that is receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food benefits during this summer.
The Department of Health and Social Services’ Division of Social Services (DSS) is collaborating with the Delaware Department of Education and Delaware schools to issue the Summer P-EBT benefit beginning this month. Households will receive the U.S. Standard Summer P-EBT Benefit of $391.00 for each eligible child in their home. The Summer P-EBT benefit will be split into two separate issuances of $195.00 on August 5th and $196.00 on September 2nd. The date that benefits are issued to individual households depends on when P-EBT eligibility information is received from Delaware schools.
P-EBT benefits may be used to purchase food at stores that accept SNAP EBT cards. SNAP households will have P-EBT benefits loaded on their existing SNAP EBT cards. Households that do not receive SNAP will have P-EBT benefits loaded on the P-EBT card that was sent to them in a previous school year. Newly eligible non-SNAP households will receive a P-EBT card in the mail along with details on how to use the card.
Families who would like to apply for free or reduced-price school meals may contact the School Nutrition Program for their child’s school or visit their school’s website to complete an application. Families must apply for free or reduced-price meals by Aug. 26, 2022, to be potentially eligible for Summer P-EBT.
Please contact the Division of Social Services at 1-866-843-7212 if you have questions about Delaware’s P-EBT Program. Visit Delaware’s P-EBT website for more information.
