FUNDING RESTORED! State restores over $9 mil for senior meals programs

UPDATE: On Friday, October 17, the Office of State Budget Director announced to the Interim Joint Committee on Appropriations and Revenue it was reallocating $9,100,000 to the Aging and Independent Living appropriation unit for the senior meals programs in Kentucky.

Look for more on this breaking story in the next issue of The Mountain Advocate  

***

Emergency funding cuts are threatening to leave dozens of senior citizens in Knox County without regular meals, according to Jessi Montgomery, chief development officer for KCEOC Community Action Partnership.
In a letter in May 2024, Cumberland Valley Area Development District informed agencies the Department of Aging and Independent Living revealed federal pandemic relief dollars would expire on September 30, and future funding would be lower.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic, the funding was increased to support more home-delivered meals to senior citizens because the congregate meals were on hold... until it was safe for people to come back together,” Montgomery said. “Because the need for home-delivered meals is so great, mostly due to poor health conditions, lack of transportation, and advanced age, etc., of the clients served, funding has continually been kept at those ‘COVID’ levels.”
Montgomery said the proposed cuts to the Senior Meal Program would “remove the funding used to increase home-delivered meals to ‘shut-in’ senior citizens.”
CVADD instructed agencies to prioritize those with the highest nutritional need and reduce costs by tightening meal programs, including possibly eliminating drive-thru and emergency meals.
“The problem is that these are not conditions that improve over time; the need is still there,” she said. “An elderly person who depended on home-delivered meals for their nutrition still needs those meals... hunger does not understand budgets.”
KCEOC operates two home delivery meal options that feed 75 senior citizens in Knox County five days a week — one providing hot meals from the senior center and another offering refrigerated meals that seniors can heat up later.
“The proposed cuts will eliminate meals for 60 senior citizens,” Montgomery said. “The senior center and senior meal programs are already underfunded and operate at a deficit before the budget cuts; the difference is made up by our fundraising efforts. We are also hosting community food drives all through November.”
Montgomery said the cost to sponsor one senior with hot meals is $1,640, and the cost to sponsor one senior with refrigerated prepared meals is $2,520.
To donate to KCEOC CAP’s Senior Meal Program, visit https://kceoc.org/donate/ or contact Jessi L. Montgomery at 606-546-3152 or jlmontgomery@kceoc.com.