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California Governor Gavin Newsom announced Friday that the state launched a program to provide daily free meals to qualifying seniors.
The "Restaurants Deliver: Home Meals for Seniors" is coordinated by federal, state, county and city authorities. It is said to be the first program of its kind in the United States.
According to the regulation, seniors who are qualified to receive the supply of three meals a day and seven days a week must be at high risk of exposure to the novel coronavirus or have compromised immune systems, and they need to be in a certain financial position.
Those who are eligible will be reimbursed 16 U.S. dollars for breakfast, 17 dollars for lunch and 28 dollars for dinner.
"It's not just about the meals," Newsom said during his daily coronavirus briefing. "It's about a human connection, about someone just checking in as they're delivering those meals and making sure people are OK."
He estimated that there are over 5.7 million older adults in California and that 1.7 million of them live alone and may be unable to cook their own meals.
In addition to helping these residents, this program is also designed to create jobs, the governor noted, saying it will "provide essential economic stimulus to local businesses and workers struggling to stay afloat during the COVID crisis."
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will pick up 75 percent of the cost, and California will pay three-quarters of the remaining cost, Newsom said, adding local governments will be responsible for the rest.
