The University is altering its COVID-19 meal delivery protocols in light of “COVID-19 conditions improving at Stanford and more generally in Santa Clara County and the nation,” according to a March 17 email from the Office of the Vice Provost for Student Affairs.
Effective March 27, students who test positive for COVID-19 will no longer receive UberEats meal credits. The email instructed students to wear a K95 mask, pick up meals from dining halls and eat either in their rooms or outside, away from any others.
Students who have recently tested positive for COVID-19 will only retain their UberEats meal delivery privileges until the fifth day of their COVID isolation. If it has been five days since they tested positive, their UberEats credits will end immediately. For the remaining five days of isolation, students are encouraged to pick up meals from the dining hall and take precautions while eating.
Free COVID-19 tests and K95 masks will still be found at Arrillaga Dining Family Commons, and Vaden Health services remain available for students.
Despite Santa Clara County reporting declining COVID-19 case counts, COVID-19 cases have risen on campus since March 6, according to Stanford’s COVID dashboard. As of March 13, 47 students reported positive COVID tests, three times higher than the previous week, the dashboard said.
The most recent emails come after the University temporarily suspended the UberEats meal delivery program on March 12. Students who requested COVID-19 meal deliveries received an email last week informing them of the temporary suspension, which was made “due to a recent unexpected rapid rise in demand.” According to the email, Stanford Dining paused the program to evaluate whether all meal delivery requests met the “appropriate requirements.”
The March 17 email thanked “everyone who responsibly requested meal delivery resources in good faith over the past several years.”
Prior to these changes, students received reimbursements for meal deliveries for the entire recommended 10-day isolation period.
Further information on Stanford’s current response to COVID can be found here.