2023-24 RFA Webinar Slides (330.48 KB)
2023-24 RFA Webinar Q&As (130.80 KB)
2023-24 DC-M RFA (418.48 KB)
2023-24 DC-M RFA Appendix A - Application (54.81 KB)
2022 Kick-Off Webinar Slides for States Selected (743.52 KB)
2022 RFA Webinar Slides (526.38 KB)
2022 RFA Webinar Q&As (162.34 KB)
2021 Kick-Off Webinar Slides for States Selected (839.29 KB)
2021 Kick-Off Webinar Q&As (117.33 KB)
2021 RFA Webinar Slides (610.56 KB)
2021 RFA Webinar Q&As (240.57 KB)
Fifth Round of Direct Certification with Medicaid States Selected
USDA's Food and Nutrition Service announced 5 new states approved to participate in the Direct Certification with Medicaid Demonstration Projects for school year (SY) 2024-25: Idaho, Maine, New Jersey, North Dakota and Rhode Island. The addition of these states increases access for low-income children while reducing administrative burden for schools and parents/guardians, as well as improving program integrity.
The total number of states participating in the demonstration projects will now be 43 as indicated in the table below:
| DC-M Pilot States since SY 2012-13 (free meals only) | DC-M Pilot States since SY 2016-17 (free and reduced price meals) | DC-M Pilot States since SY 2017-18 (free and reduced price meals) | DC-M Pilot States since SY 2022-23 (free and reduced price meals) | DC-M Pilot States since SY 2023-24 (free and reduced price meals) | DC-M Pilot States for SY 2024-25 (free and reduced price meals) |
| California* Florida* Illinois* Kentucky Massachusetts* New York Pennsylvania* | California * (14 districts) Florida* Massachusetts* Nebraska Utah Virginia West Virginia | California* (statewide) Connecticut Indiana Iowa Michigan Nevada Texas Washington Wisconsin | Alabama Illinois* Kansas Louisiana Maryland Minnesota North Carolina South Carolina | Arizona Colorado Delaware Georgia Montana New Mexico Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania* Tennessee Vermont Wyoming | Idaho Maine New Jersey North Dakota Rhode Island |
| *Indicates states that have changed their pilot status over-time. These states expanded their initial demonstration project to include additional locations and/or expand from free meals only to free and reduced price meals. | |||||
Direct Certification with Medicaid - Request for Applications
USDA is committed to expanding direct certification to automatically enroll more students for school meals via additional demonstration projects to expand the evaluation of direct certification with Medicaid (DC-M). USDA has released another Request for Applications to Participate in Demonstration Projects to Evaluate the Direct Certification with Medicaid.
Authority
Under the pilot project authority in Section 18(c) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (NSLA), 42 USC 1769(c), the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) will conduct additional demonstration projects to expand the evaluation of direct certification with Medicaid (DC-M) for both free and reduced price (f/rp) meal eligibility in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP). DC-M is the use of Medicaid data files to identify children eligible to receive meals through the NSLP and SBP at free or reduced price without need of application.
Scope of Demonstration Projects
State agencies that administer the NSLP and SBP may apply to participate in the demonstration project to conduct direct certification with Medicaid for both free and reduced price school meals for local education agencies (LEAs) statewide. States that are participating in the free only meal demonstration projects but are interested in conducting direct certification for both free and reduced price meal eligibility in all LEAs may also apply.
In these demonstration projects, direct certification using Medicaid data is limited to children who are members of households with income that does not exceed the following NSLP income standards:
- Free school meal eligibility, 130 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) for the family size used by Medicaid; and
- Reduced price school meal eligibility, 185 percent of the FPL for the family size used by Medicaid.
Due Dates
State agencies that administer the NSLP and SBP are invited to apply to participate in these demonstration projects to evaluate DC-M. FNS recognizes the challenges and time needed to establish data-sharing agreements and implement system changes so that data matching can begin. This Request for Applications (RFA) provides state agencies time to accomplish those requirements:
- Applications for demonstration projects beginning on July 1, 2024 for SY 2024-25 are due as soon as possible, but will not be accepted after Jan. 16, 2024.
- Applications for demonstration projects beginning SY 2025-26 may also be submitted at this time for early selection.
Application Package
- Direct Certification Medicaid Demonstration Project Request For Applications
- Appendix A - Application Template
- Appendix B - Letters of Commitment Templates
CMCS Informational Bulletin
Direct Certification with Medicaid Reports
- USDA Direct Certification With Medicaid for Free and Reduced-Price Meals Demonstration, SY 2019-20
- Evaluation of the Direct Certification with Medicaid for Free and Reduced-Price Meals Demonstrations, Year 2, SY 2017-18
- Evaluation of the Direct Certification with Medicaid for Free and Reduced-Price Meals Demonstration - Year 1, SY 2016-17
- Evaluation of Demonstrations of Direct Certification of Children Receiving Medicaid Benefits for Free School Meals: Year 1 SY 2012-13