Food pantry workers now on eligibility list for COVID vaccine
ALBANY, N.Y. » The Food Pantries for the Capital District is applauding the recent inclusion of panty workers on New York’s COVID-19 vaccine eligibility list
Since early February, The Food Pantries for the Capital District, working with the New York State Community Food Assistance Network (NYS-CFAN), has worked to get food pantry personnel on the COVID-19 vaccine eligibility list, a press release from the organization said, noting that those workers have been reinstated as essential workers in the 1b classification and are now eligible to receive the vaccine.
“Ensuring the safety of those who work in food pantries and directly serve people in need on the front lines is not only vital to our mission of addressing hunger at The Food Pantries, but it is essential to lessening the impact of this virus on low-income and vulnerable New Yorkers,” said Natasha Pernicka, executive director of The Food Pantries for the Capital District, a coalition of more than 65 food pantries that serve 65,000 people annually, in the release. “On behalf of our member food pantry network and partners across the state, we want to thank Governor Cuomo and his administration for helping to protect the health and safety of essential emergency food providers and the more than 2 million people they serve.”
Since March 2020, groceries for more than 300 million meals have been distributed to New Yorkers seeking food assistance. New York state is home to nearly 3,000 community emergency programs, including food pantries, and there are approximately 10,000 food pantry workers and volunteers throughout the state.
Amid the pandemic and economic crisis, frontline food pantry and other essential community food assistance workers have been challenged to adjust operations and keep up with distributing food to community members, the release said, sharing that many individuals and families under quarantine, as well as those who are considered vulnerable, are relying on pantries. “Keeping pantries open and operating is critical to ensuring families are not going without,” it said.
More information about The Food Pantries for the Capital District is available online at www. thefoodpantries.org.