Casey leads bipartisan push to expand delivery for SNAP recipients during pandemic
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Today, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), led a bipartisan group of his
colleagues in calling on the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to
immediately work to ensure SNAP participants can receive home food
delivery and curbside pickup during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March,
Casey urged the USDA to address this problem after his office received a
phone call from a constituent who cannot safely leave home to travel to
the grocery store, yet was denied home delivery as a SNAP recipient.
In the letter to USDA, the senators wrote, “The COVID-19 pandemic has
resulted in an unprecedented rise in unemployment and a subsequent
increase in demand for food assistance. At the same time, social
distancing guidelines and stay at home orders have made it challenging —
and unsafe — for many individuals to travel to purchase food. This is
especially true for seniors and immunocompromised individuals who are at
higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19, as well as individuals
with disabilities and families who lack reliable transportation. We
believe that no individual or family should be disadvantaged simply
because they rely on SNAP benefits to access the food they need.”
USDA’s SNAP Online Purchasing Pilot makes it possible for SNAP
participants to purchase grocery deliveries, but its availability
remains limited to the states and retailers who have opted in to the
program. In addition to expanding the Online Purchasing Pilot, the
Senators urged USDA to answer key questions and to maximize and the
alternative mechanisms that exist to facilitate delivery for SNAP
participants.
Casey was joined by Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI),
Angus King (I-ME), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Kamala
Harris (D-CA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Cory Booker
(D-NJ), Tina Smith (D-MN), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Sherrod Brown (D-OH),
Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Tammy
Duckworth (D-IL), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Pat Leahy (D-VT), Bernie Sanders
(I-VT), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Patty Murray (D-WA), Richard Blumenthal
(D-CT), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Jack Reed (D-RI),
Ed Markey (D-MA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
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