DENVER — For the first ten days of the month, tens of thousands of people receive their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits in Colorado to buy food for their families.
With COVID-19, where limiting visits to the grocery store and buying online are encouraged, SNAP beneficiaries find themselves tangled in rules created before the pandemic.
Can people buy groceries online with SNAP benefits?
Right now there are six states that are a part of a federal pilot program to make buying groceries online with SNAP benefits easier with certain stores.
Those states, are Alabama, Iowa, Nebraska, New York, Oregon and Washington.
What are the options now?
Madlynn Ruble with the Colorado Department of Human Services said once people find stores that accept SNAP benefits, they can check if retailers can swipe cards at the time of delivery so they can use their Electronics Benefits Transfer (EBT) card.
People can also check if stores allow orders to be placed online with in-store pickup.
The state said Walmart currently offers this.
People can also authorize someone else to use their EBT cards/benefits to grocery shop for them. How people can authorize will vary county to county.
In Denver, people can call 720-944-4DHS to set up those permissions.
Denver Human Services is encouraging people to apply for these benefits online and have provided ways for them to pick up and drop off applications while the city building remains closed.
Can the rules change?
Paul Vranas who lives in the Lowry neighborhood started a petition online to change the rules after he started helping deliver food to lower-income families in his area.
Through his neighborhood association, businesses, food banks and property managers of affordable housing, Vranas helped deliver food to 85 apartments over the last few weeks. In the process, he realized that families relying on SNAP benefits weren't able to go grocery shopping online
"So we have people (who) are immuno-compromised, kids with special needs, elderly that have no other choice between going to the grocery store and risking exposure or getting expose and getting food on their table," he said.
Democratic State Sen. Robert Rodriguez said community members started reaching out to him about their concerns over people not being able to buy groceries online with SNAP benefits.
He said the issue is ultimately federal since it's a federal program.
Democratic Rep. Joe Neguse is working on legislation to make it easier to buy groceries online with these benefits.
The legislation will address the following:
- Allow grocery delivery for SNAP participants by allowing for the EBT card to be swiped either at the point of home delivery (with a mobile device) or when the order is picked up at the store;
- Authorize public-private partnerships between USDA and authorized SNAP retailers to support grocery delivery during the pandemic;
- Allow food banks to waive administrative requirements to enable the safest and most efficient delivery of food aid to all who need it during an emergency;
- Authorize additional funds to support delivery and make food available for SNAP participants who are seniors, immunocompromised individuals, or others who are unable to travel safely to a grocery store;
- And extend the WIC certification period for infants from 1 year to up to 2 years, and extend the certification periods for postpartum women to 2 years to reduce needless travel for certification appointments.
"Given Congress's expanded emergency funding of SNAP and WIC throughout this public health emergency and the economic uncertainty of the COVID-19 outbreak, it is imperative that we adapt the rules of these benefits to meet the pressing realities of our time," Neguse said. "We must ensure families across Colorado who depend on food security offered through these programs can continue to feed their families without violating social distancing protocols or Colorado's "stay-at-home" order."
What other options do people have:
Ellie Agar with Hunger Free Colorado said there are multiple groups helping deliver food. Denver Delivered, which needs volunteers, is preparing food for homebound individuals and older adults. Right now there is a waitlist.
RTD Access-a-Ride is delivering groceries to current and new Access-a-Ride clients who order groceries online.
Agar said multiple food pantries, like Jewish Family Services, are delivering food boxes to clients and have pre-made boxes available for pick up.
Agar also said it's been a piecemeal response which is why they are hoping for changes at a federal level.
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