John, Meet Kathy Fisher, our Policy Director here at the Coalition Against Hunger! As Kathy mentions, the Policy and Advocacy work of the Coalition helps address the needs of those facing food insecurity by pushing for policy and program improvements on the local, state and federal levels. Last year, as the COVID-19 pandemic set in, it created major challenges for nutrition programs to reach those in need. This meant that most of our work was in response to the pandemic. Here's some of what we were able to accomplish: - We pressed our federal elected officials to include a 15% increase to SNAP (food stamp) benefits in COVID-19 relief legislation. This 15% increase occurred in December 2020.
- We garnered support, along with our partners, from nearly 200 PA organizations, urging USDA Secretary Perdue to continue child nutrition waivers that were critical to ensuring children could continue to access meals during a far from normal school year.
- We co-hosted webinars explaining the new P-EBT program that was created by Congress to provide resources to families whose children missed out on free and reduced-price school meals due to remote and hybrid learning.
- We gathered feedback from individuals whose families have participated in SNAP or WIC, to learn more about the benefits and obstacles to utilizing these nutrition programs.
- And so much more!
We want to make sure that everyone facing food insecurity has a voice in the policy changes that directly affect them and that progress continues to be made in the work to end hunger. As the pandemic continues, bringing more uncertainty to anti-hunger programs and policy changes, please make sure we can continue to push for policy and program improvements, by making a donation today! |
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