THE PANDEMIC CHILD HUNGER PREVENTION ACT: MAKING THE CASE FOR UNIVERSAL SCHOOL MEALS

INTRODUCTION

No child should have to worry about where their next meal will come from or whether their family will be able to afford to put food on the table, but unfortunately, that is the reality for millions of Americans. According to the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) latest data, 13 million U.S. children are food insecure. In April, 35% of households with children under 18 responded to a survey stating, “the food we bought just didn’t last, and we didn’t have enough money to get more.” This is an increase of nearly 20 percentage points from 2018 data, showing just how detrimental the COVID-19 pandemic has been for families due to record high unemployment rates. For those children, uncertain access to food, especially healthy, nutritious food, has serious consequences for health, learning, and development.

Before the pandemic, nearly 30 million American children relied on free or reduced-priced school meals. Many USDA child nutrition programs, such as the School Breakfast Program (SBP) and National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provide nutritious foods that help reduce the harmful impact of food insecurity and improve health outcomes for children. In the past, free and reduced-priced school meals have helped to free up financial resources for other necessary household bills or purchases, but now, many families are requiring additional assistance to put food on the table.

That is why House Education and Labor Committee Chairman, Representative Robert “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) introduced the Pandemic Child Hunger Prevention Act in the U.S. House of Representatives on July 30, 2020. This bill intends to make all students eligible for free school meals during the 2020-2021 school year regardless of in-person or remote learning status. This will allow two healthy school meals to be provided each day either via a “grab and go” distribution, home delivery, or in person at school. Additionally, this bill addresses other child nutrition programs such as the NSLP Afterschool Snack Program, the Child and Adult Care Food Program, and Summer Meals Programs, which is how schools have been serving meals during the COVID-19 pandemic since schools shut down in March. At this time, over a dozen U.S. Representatives have expressed support for the legislation and more than 35 organizations including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the School Nutrition Association, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and the American Federation of Teachers have voiced their support for this bill.

CHILD NUTRITION HUNGER RELIEF: THE PANDEMIC CHILD HUNGER PREVENTION ACT

It is a basic human right to have access to enough food for a healthy and active life, yet childhood hunger in the U.S. is on the rise due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Pandemic Child Hunger Prevention Act is exactly what families and school nutrition programs need in order to increase access to school meals and combat child hunger.

Under this Legislation:

All students will temporarily be made eligible for free school meals during the 2020-2021 school year through the SBP and NSLP.
Due to the flexibility granted to USDA under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, free school meals will be available to students in school, during remote learning through “grab and go” distributions, or meal delivery.
All school districts, including those operating off-site services, can serve all children without having to certify the eligibility of each individual child.
Anywhere in the country, schools and non-profit community partners can operate meal services, including off-site, under the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and the Summer Seamless Option (SSO), where they can serve all children without having to certify the eligibility of each individual child.
Anywhere in the country, schools and non-profit community partners will be able to serve afterschool meals and snacks, under the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) At-Risk Afterschool Program or the NSLP Afterschool Snack Program, without having to certify the eligibility of each individual child.
All Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) day care homes will be eligible for reimbursement at the Tier 1 level.

HEALTH BENEFITS OF SCHOOL MEALS

School nutrition programs aim to increase food security and reduce hunger by providing children access to safe and healthful foods. School nutrition programs are required by the USDA to meet dietary recommendations for children by following the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. In fact, school meals are associated with a healthier overall eating pattern with increased fruit, vegetable, and whole grains than meals brought to school from home. In the era of COVID-19, it is important to note that underlying diet-related chronic disease is a major risk factor for experiencing severe COVID-19 complications. So more than ever, our school nutrition programs and elected officials should be focusing on providing healthful and nourishing foods to all students. Research has found that children who eat school meals are less likely to visit the school nurse, and more likely to have increased attendance and academic performance.

UNIVERSAL SCHOOL MEALS FOR ALL STUDENTS DURING COVID-19

The three objectives of the Pandemic Child Hunger Prevention Act are to expand access to free school meals for all students, save foodservice programs from insolvency, and provide nutrient-dense food to children.

EXPANDING ACCESS AND REMOVING PAPERWORK FOR CHILD HUNGER PREVENTION

Expanding free school meals to all K-12 students will remove the application process required for parents/guardians to qualify their children for free or reduced-priced school meals. Currently, to qualify, families must demonstrate that their income was at or less than 130 percent of the federal poverty line. Due to the economic impact that COVID-19 has had on many families, school systems expect a large influx of newly eligible students for school meal programs this year and districts are concerned that they do not have the capacity to process all of the applications. Many of the parents/guardians of these students have never navigated this process, and the removal of this application process would likely take a huge weight off many parents/guardians that are worried about how they are going to feed their children.

Universal school meals for students can help reduce food shaming and stigma. It is heartbreaking to think that some students refuse to eat school meals because of being embarrassed of being told in front of their classmates that they have no money in their account or are singled out for receiving free or reduce-priced meals. In addition, providing universal school meals to students will ensure that no child will fall through the cracks, especially for families with fluctuating income causing their children to weave in and out of eligibility for free or reduced-priced school meals throughout this next year.

THE STRUGGLE TO REMAIN STRONG: SCHOOL NUTRITION PROGRAMS

In early March 2020, numerous principals, superintendents, and governors took action to stop the spread of COVID-19 by implementing the first wave of school closings. These closings left many school staff members scrambling to try to figure out how to continue the school year remotely. School foodservice professionals throughout the U.S. fought through adversity in order to ensure that emergency meal service was provided to students. They extended this emergency meal service into summer through Summer Feeding Programs, specifically the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and the National School Lunch Program Seamless Summer Option (SSO). While this allowed many children to receive meals through distributions at schools or delivery to homes, it left school nutrition programs in a financial crisis because school nutrition programs are self-sufficient and rely on reimbursement based on number of meals served. The median deficit per district is $200,000 and for larger districts there is an estimated loss of $2.35 million. A few of the many reasons for this loss include discontinuation of traditional revenue (a la carte) sales, lower number of meals served, fixed labor costs, and increased expenditure for equipment, packaging, personal protective gear and food costs.

As the school year rapidly approaches, school nutrition service programs are starting out on the brink of collapse. The current reimbursement model risks falling short of school districts’ financial needs. This would place many school nutrition service programs even deeper in financial loss. There is still so much unknown for the 2020-2021 school year, but it is likely that many students will be participating in an in-person and remote hybrid learning method or entirely remote learning. For students that attend school in person, the CDC guidelines require them to maintain social distancing during mealtimes. This poses a significant logistical shift in how school meals will be prepared and served. If the Pandemic Child Hunger Prevention Act is passed, it will help streamline meal service for schools across the country and allow students to have access to food to fuel them for learning.

CONCLUSION: THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW

As the new school year rapidly approaches, there is no better time than now to ensure children will have access to nutritious meals. In a time of much uncertainty, access to healthy meals for students should be a given. Whether you are an individual or organization, I encourage you to support this legislation which is vital to addressing the food insecurity crisis we are currently facing. Children cannot be hungry for knowledge if they are just plain hungry.

For a fact sheet of the Pandemic Child Hunger Prevention Act, click here.

For a Q&A sheet on the Pandemic Child Hunger Prevention Act, click here.

For the bill text of the Pandemic Child Hunger Prevention Act, click here.