Harrisburg, PA – Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding and Growing old Secretary Robert Torres in the present day highlighted the Wolf Administration’s profitable rebrand of the PA Senior Meals Field Program in 2021, formally generally known as the Commodity Supplemental Meals Program. Since taking steps to enhance entry to and consciousness of this system, greater than 7,100 new seniors have enrolled.
Key to the trouble is a partnership between the Departments of Agriculture and Growing old that has enabled the Division of Growing old’s PACE pharmaceutical help program to conduct outreach to its enrollees who may be eligible for the Senior Meals Field Program.
“Not with the ability to serve Pennsylvania’s seniors in want of meals help was not an choice,” mentioned. Redding. “We’re thrilled that greater than 7,100 new seniors have discovered worth within the meals field and stay up for persevering with to discover choices for enhancements to this system in 2022. I need to see each one in all our eligible seniors in Pennsylvania have entry to nutritious meals, it is their proper.”
Whereas Pennsylvania has funding for a caseload of 36,218 low-income seniors from the U.S. Division of Agriculture (USDA), enrollment dropped to 29,000 individuals in early 2021 regardless of Pennsylvania being residence to greater than 300,000 eligible seniors. With the accepted caseload in jeopardy of being decreased by the USDA and Pennsylvania being at-risk of not with the ability to totally serve the 29,000 enrolled seniors, the Wolf Administration took instant motion to extend consciousness and scale back obstacles to entry for seniors.
Meals insecurity and starvation can have dangerous impacts on the well being and well-being of older adults. Poor meals consumption may cause diet deficiencies that improve illness danger or worsen current situations. Consuming fewer energy and vitamins may also lower independence and the power to stay residence with out help.
In spring 2021, the Division of Agriculture took the first steps to enhance accessibility by renaming the Commodity Supplemental Meals Program in Pennsylvania to the Senior Meals Field Program to make eligibility clear and eradicating the requirement for seniors to confirm their revenue to obtain a meals field.
In July, the Division of Agriculture established a partnership with the Division of Growing old to work with their PACE Prescription Assistance Program name heart to proactively contact and enroll eligible seniors for this system.
PACE and PACENET help greater than 250,000 older, lower-income Pennsylvanians with acquiring low-cost, life-saving drugs. The PACE program estimates that as many as 85,000 of their enrollees are additionally eligible for the Senior Meals Field Program.
“It is important that seniors can simply entry nutritious meals to assist guarantee their well being, well-being and independence. Subsequently, we should work collectively to supply choices to beat challenges older adults face in acquiring wholesome meals. Since starting a collaboration with the Senior Meals Field Program simply six months in the past, our PACE program has been capable of attain hundreds of PACE enrollees who could not have recognized about this diet program’s existence, or that they could be eligible. We’re happy with the robust response to this partnership and I encourage all eligible seniors to make the most of the Senior Meals Field Program via the various choices accessible,” mentioned Secretary of Growing old Robert Torres.
Lastly, in September, the Division of Agriculture and Starvation-Free Pennsylvania, the state’s accomplice in administering the Senior Meals Field Program, launched a partnership with DoorDash to have meals bins delivered to homebound seniors or these experiencing transportation obstacles. The partnership is a part of Undertaking DASH, a charitable initiative that connects meals banks and meals pantries with purchasers via final mile supply. Presently, seniors in 11 counties are in a position to decide on to have their field delivered by a Dasher.
The presently enrolled counties embody Bucks, Dauphin, Erie, Fayette, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Montgomery, Philadelphia, Washington, Westmoreland, and York. This system stays open to different counties because it continues to develop.
By these actions in 2021, Pennsylvania is optimistic that will probably be accepted to take care of its current caseload by the USDA within the coming 12 months. The Administration hopes to additional improve enrollment in 2022 and improve Pennsylvania’s caseload to serve much more seniors in want within the coming years.
The Pennsylvania Senior Meals Field is a product of the federally funded, state-administered Commodity Supplemental Meals Program. It really works to enhance the well being of low-income seniors by offering a complement to groceries of quite a lot of nutritious, shelf-stable merchandise together with shelf-stable fluid milk, juice, ready-to-eat cereal, rice, pasta, dry beans, peanut butter, canned meat, poultry, or fish, and canned fruit and veggies. It’s administered by Starvation-Free Pennsylvania via their community of 17 meals banks offering the Senior Meals Field all 67 counties. As soon as signed up, eligible seniors can select to obtain their month-to-month field through choose up, drive-through, or supply from a program accomplice together with senior condominium complexes, senior neighborhood facilities, and meals pantries.
In Pennsylvania, eligible individuals for the Pennsylvania Senior Meals Field Program embody low-income people who’re at the least 60 years previous and whose family revenue is at or beneath 130 p.c of the U.S. poverty degree.
To use, seniors could name 800-468-2433 to be directed to the regional meals financial institution distributing the Senior Meals Field of their county. Or go surfing at www.agriculture.pa.gov/seniorfoodbox and fill out the Senior Meals Field Utility Kind.
MEDIA CONTACT: Shannon Powers, Agriculture — shpowers@pa.gov
Jack Eilber, Growing old — agingcomms@pa.gov
