Louisiana approved for fourth round of Pandemic EBT benefits

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) received approval for the fourth time to issue Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits to eligible children for the 2022-2023 school year.

Louisiana will begin disbursing payments in early May to eligible households with children in grades K-12. There will also be childcare and summer benefits issued in the late summer, officials added.

This is the fourth year Louisiana has issued P-EBT benefits. Since 2020, DCFS has reportedly issued more than $1.14 Billion in P-EBT benefits to more than 1.2 million children.

According to officials, benefits are being issued in a tiered approach for school year P-EBT. It is based on the number of days a child missed due to COVID per month at a rate of $8.18 per day. Children who previously received P-EBT benefits will have school year 2022-23 and summer P-EBT benefits issued to their existing P-EBT cards.

A P-EBT card will be mailed to children who were not eligible for P-EBT benefits the last round but are now eligible for school year 2023 and summer benefits.

All child care P-EBT benefits will be issued to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) card of the eligible child’s household.

Eligibility from DCFS:

In most cases, there is no P-EBT application process for parents/guardians. Schools will report to DCFS which students meet the criteria for eligibility. Parents/guardians of eligible homeschooled and virtual school students must complete an application with their local public school or approved virtual school by Thursday, May 11, 2023. See additional information here.

The approval of P-EBT benefits is in coordination with the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) and the United States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (USDA FNS), officials said.

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