Texas Looking for Approval to Allow SNAP Benefits for Online Groceries

Texas Looking for Approval to Allow SNAP Benefits for Online Groceries

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A lot more people right now are getting their groceries delivered to them or curbside pickup due to the coronavirus. Some people cannot do that right now because they have a SNAP card.

If you do not know what SNAP is, it's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. You may think of this as food stamps. Many people use this program each and every day. One of the requirements of SNAP is to use your card in store for purchases. You cannot use this service for online grocery orders.

In April 2019, the SNAP program in several states allowed for the use of online grocery orders. Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Nebraska, New York, Oregon and Washington all allow this. Texas last week filed a petition to the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Services to join the program to allow SNAP recipients in Texas to have that same ability

"It’s critical right now that SNAP recipients have that option just given the current environment and lines at grocery stores and the public health concerns,” said Celia Cole, the CEO of Feeding Texas, a statewide network of food banks that works to end hunger. “The online pilot is a great opportunity for Texas to make sure that low-income people can shop safely during this pandemic.”
Hopefully this program gets approved. Some stores are working to get a curbside pickup option for SNAP recipients by the end of this month. As far as I have researched, Walmart is the only store that offers curbside for SNAP at this time.
Filed Under: Covid-19 Coronavirus
Categories: Food, Political, Texas News

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