universal free lunch Archives - Marketplace

For 2 years, there was such a thing as a free lunch — at public schools. Not anymore.

by Stephanie Hughes

Aug 18, 2022

The pandemic relief program that provided free meals was an outlier in the 75-year history of the federal school lunch program.

The federal government's universal free school lunch program has expired, though the idea is popular with parents.

Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

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School lunches aren't free to everyone anymore. Some advocates think they should be.

by Samantha Fields

Jun 30, 2022

There are a lot of benefits to making school lunch and other social benefits more universal. But, yes, it's expensive to do.

Despite the popularity of universal free lunches during the pandemic, lawmakers allowed the program to expire.

Jon Cherry/Getty Images

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