You know it, we know it – things are dire and we are seeing the ripple effect through our CACFP community. There is a bill that we think will help: H.R. 6201 – Families First Coronavirus Response Act.
Yesterday, the Roundtable sent a letter to our leaders urging them to advance solutions for the CACFP community. We shared that CACFP desperately needs waivers allowing CACFP to continue operating without the congregate requirement; a guarantee of reimbursement, regardless of meeting meal component requirements; and the flexibility for CACFP sponsors to work remotely (i.e. suspending on-site visitations requirements) until it is deemed safe to have social interaction.
H.R. 6201 will help people put food on the table, provides paid leave, protects public health workers, and establishes free testing for COVID-19. In addition, USDA will have the authority to issue waivers to support access to the child nutrition programs, including issuing nationwide waivers which would reduce paperwork for states and help more schools, local government agencies, and community organizations quickly adapt and provide meals, waivers that can increase programmatic costs, and waivers to adapt meal pattern requirements in response to disruptions to the food supply.
USDA also will have the authority to allow child and adult care centers to operate as non-congregate sites.
The House passed H.R. 6201 and it is now before the Senate. It's time to take action!
Call your Senators at (202) 224-3121 (Capitol Switchboard) and urge them to quickly pass H.R. 6201 - Families First Coronavirus Response Act. You should also reach out to your Senators on social media.
All Senators need to hear from their constituents that these protections are a critically important first step toward addressing this public health and economic crisis. Families and workers across the country need access NOW to vital programs and basic needs. The bill protects people most in need, and so protects all of us.
Thanks to Moms Rising, you can also use these easy options to reach your Senators:
Text COVID19 to 747464 or call toll-free at 1-844-633-2048.
Questions? elyse@ccfproundtable.org