August 12, 2020 – The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) has extended the deadline for Illinoisans to apply for nutrition benefits to August 31.
Eligible Illinois residents can receive food benefits totaling $342 per eligible student. Approximately 390,000 eligible students across the State of Illinois have not yet applied for Illinois Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) benefits for the 2020-2021 school year.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) authorized and will fund the P-EBT program, which will bring food benefits to all school-aged children who are eligible for free or reduced meals at schools through the National School Lunch Program. The benefit is issued to all SNAP households with school-aged children.
The P-EBT program has already provided more than 730,000 children in Illinois with more than $246 million in additional nutrition benefits. Benefits are calculated using a $5.70 per day and per student calculation.
• $119.70= May 2020
• $39.90= June 2020
These benefits apply to households with school-aged children who were eligible for free or reduced meals from March 2020 through June 2020 when Illinois schools were operating remotely due to COVID-19. Those who did not receive SNAP benefits last spring are able to submit a simplified application for P-EBT benefits using the ABE.Illinois.gov online portal or by completing a paper application which is available at the IDHS website at dhs.state.il.us.