(WXYZ) — Oakland County is providing a free home delivery grocery service membership for senior adults throughout the county.
The membership is meant to limit seniors' exposure to COVID-19.
The service is through Shipt, which normally costs $99 annually. It gives Oakland County seniors age 60 and over the convenience and safety of shopping for food and household essentials online and have free same-day home delivery from a variety of local stores.
Only the delivery is free. The ordered items must be paid for online using a credit or debit card.
“The number of COVID-19 cases continues to increase locally and we all must do our part to help stop the spread of the virus,” Oakland County Executive David Coulter said. “Many seniors may be reluctant to leave their homes and may not be getting the fresh and heathy foods they need, especially on colder days. This program allows our senior residents to receive essential food and grocery items safely in their homes without risking the possible exposure to the coronavirus and the flu.”
Shipt is a service that shops for you and then safely delivers the groceries and household essentials direct to your door. This can include refrigerated foods, pet supplies or simple household essentials that you would normally find at a local grocery store.
This annual membership is free of charge to Oakland County senior residents who are aged 60 or older and offers unlimited, same-day grocery delivery. The free memberships are provided on a first come, first served basis while supplies last.
Interested residents must sign up by Dec. 10 at www.oakgov.com/covid/grants/shipt to receive a registration code and redeem it by Dec. 20. The membership entitles you to free delivery for orders over $35.
A $7 delivery fee is added if the order total is less than $35. The buyer must provide Shipt with credit card information to process payment as well as taxes and optional gratuities.
Seniors who don’t have computer access can register with the help of a family member. The account must be in the senior’s name and the address for delivery must be in Oakland County.
Seniors who live in the following zip codes are not in the Shipt delivery areas due to lack of available vendors: 48178 – South Lyon Charter Township; 48462 – Brandon Township; 48367 – Addison, Lakeville, Leonard; and 48442 – Highland Township.
If you live in one of these areas, there may be options for delivery or pick up from local stores such as Kroger, Meijer, Walmart or Target or you can contact Shipt directly for further clarification.
Complete information on the program is found at www.oakgov.com/covid/grants/shipt. Registration assistance is available by calling the Oakland County Help Hotline at weekdays from 8 a.m.- 8 p.m. at 248-858-1000.
Additional Coronavirus information and resources:
Click here for a page with resources including a COVID-19 overview from the CDC, details on cases in Michigan, a timeline of Governor Gretchen Whitmer's orders since the outbreak, coronavirus' impact on Southeast Michigan, and links to more information from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the CDC and the WHO.
View a global coronavirus tracker with data from Johns Hopkins University.
See complete coverage on our Coronavirus Continuing Coverage page.
Visit our The Rebound Detroit, a place where we are working to help people impacted financially from the coronavirus. We have all the information on everything available to help you through this crisis and how to access it.