The Arkansas Department of Human Services announced that the Arkansas Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) plan was approved on Thursday, June 24th by the Federal Government to assist students financially and replace meals for the days that schools reported school closures or virtual learning days due to COVID-19 concerns.
Their website says that other eligibility requirements include that the students must have been participating in a free or reduced lunch program through a National School Lunch Program and their school must have reported the school closure or virtual learning days, or the student must have chosen to attend school virtually.
In the summer of 2020, the Department of Human Services issued P-EBT benefits to eligible students to help replace the cost of meals incurred when the state closed schools from mid-March through May 2020. This year, children aged 6 and under who attended childcare and were a part of an active SNAP case between October 2020 and May 2021 are also eligible.
Beneficiaries will be issued a new P-EBT card unless the family already has an existing SNAP case and the address on the SNAP case matches the address on file with the child’s school. Cards are expected to arrive by July 31.
