Hilda E. Santiago

Please mark your calendars - Tuesday, August 31st at 6:30pm my Meriden colleagues and I will host a Facebook Live event that will cover the 2021 Legislative Session wrap-up and other issues important to you.

Good news! The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) announced that they have approved the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for individuals 16 years of age and older.

This is a great opportunity to save while preparing students for going back to school.

This week, more than $16 million in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief II (ESSER II) funds was made available to 170 school districts across Connecticut. This relief money will allow schools throughout our state to provide special education services to more than 80,000 students during the upcoming school year.

The federal government updated its masking guidelines for fully vaccinated people last week. The new advice is to mask up indoors if you live in a place with "substantial" or "high" coronavirus transmission.

The State of Connecticut has created a one stop shop to help older people navigate state services, for everything from age-based discrimination to neglect issues.

Last Friday, over 57,800 students enrolled in the free or reduced-price meals program received the last round of the Pandemic EBT funding. This Friday, over 218,500 qualifying families will receive additional emergency food benefits through SNAP. Please find more information below on these latest rounds of food support and how to access assistance.