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Nebraska authorized to disburse more pandemic-EBT to eligible families

Benefit amounts dependent on meeting criteria
Free School Meals
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LINCOLN, Neb. (KMTV) — On Tuesday, the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) announced that it has received authorization for a fourth round of pandemic electronic benefit transfers (P-EBT).

The benefits will be issued beginning on Wednesday, with amounts determined based on the number of COVID-19 absences a student had per month. Families are eligible if their students qualify for free or reduced-price meals, have been impacted by COVID-19-related absences from school and have had those absences reported by their school district to the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE).

The greater the amount of COVID-19-related absences a student has, the higher the benefit value will be. Students who missed 1 to 5 days will receive $21 per issuance date, $71 for missing 6 to 15 days, and $121 for 16 days or higher. Families who already have the P-EBT cards will have the funds automatically loaded onto their cards, and those who do not currently have the cards will receive them via mail.

The P-EBT is part of wider assistance provided through the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and the disbursement of the benefits will be overseen by the Nebraska DHHS and the NDE. There will be three more installments of benefits issued to families in addition to Wednesday's first issuance of benefits, with the last issuance on Aug. 16.

For questions regarding the P-EBT program, or if you think your student had eligible COVID-19 absences that were not reported by their school district, DHHS can be contacted at dhhs.nebraskapebt@nebraska.gov.

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