Recipients in American Samoa will have more time to apply for benefits under the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) program of the US Dept of Agricultures Food and Nutrition Service.
The P-EBT program gives school children who missed out on meals in the last school year and summer of 2021, due to the cancellation or shortening of classes because of the Covid pandemic, vouchers to buy eligible food items to make up for the missed meals.
The original deadline for parents to apply for the benefits was October 30, 2021 but Director of the Dept of Human and Social Services which administers the program, Muavaefaatasi John Suisala sought an extension to December 31, 2021.
In his Dec 2 extension request, the DHSS Director said the American Samoa State Plan which was approved August 8 includes a process requiring households to register by October 31. “Unfortunately we underestimated the time needed for this purpose.”
Muavaefaatasi said DHSS was requesting an extension to December 31, to give households additional time to provide the required information to open case files and issue benefits.
The DHSS Director was notified in a Dec 10 letter from the USDA that the application was approved.
The estimated value of the Pandemic benefits is $6.1 million and the extension doesnit affect this funding amount.
