The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) has received approval from the federal government to provide additional food benefits for young children whose families received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits between September 2021 and May 2022.
These additional benefits will provide approximately $46 million in additional food assistance for 80,000 young children in Oregon.
The benefits will be issued to families’ existing EBT cards in the fall, with the exact dates yet to be determined.
“We are grateful to be able to provide these additional food benefits to families with young children in Oregon,” said Jana McLellan, interim director of the ODHS Self-Sufficiency Programs. “As communities continue to be impacted by COVID-19 and the rising cost of food, we know that many families are experiencing hardship and are struggling to get enough healthy food for themselves and their children.
“We encourage anyone who is struggling to meet their basic needs to contact our partners at 211, the Oregon Food Bank and their local Community Action Agency for support during this difficult time.”
Eligible families will receive an extra $63 food benefit per child on their EBT card for every month the children were ages 5 or younger and their family was receiving SNAP benefits. Families can receive up to $567 in additional food benefits for each child who is eligible.
These additional food benefits are part of the Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) program, a temporary COVID-19 program meant to provide additional food support for children whose access to adequate and quality food may have been impacted by COVID-19.
Visit pebt.oregon.gov for more information about the P-EBT program.