From March 12-25 last year (2019), the 2-1-1 helpline in Maryland received 4 requests from sick or disables seniors looking for help getting home delivered meals. Over the same dates this year, 453 requests. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on vulnerable populations is profound, and is being captured every day by 2-1-1s across the U.S. In this analysis, we examined requests to 2-1-1s for home-delivered meals during the first 14 days of the COVID-19 pandemic. In all 23 states we studied, the number of requests was dramatically higher that the same two weeks in 2019. Mouse over any bar in the chart below to see the number of requests received in 2019 and 2020 by 2-1-1s in that state.
