Federal Shutdown Threatens SNAP Benefits for Millions of Families

American Community Media hosted a national news briefing last Friday focused on what may be one of the most devastating food assistance disruptions in modern United States history as 42 million Americans prepare to lose food benefits in November due to the continued federal government shutdown. The conversation was urgent and emotional, but it was also deeply factual. It carried both data and human stakes at the same exact time. Speakers emphasized that this crisis is not caused because there is no money in the system. The issue is that federal leadership is choosing not to deploy already existing emergency contingency funds that were designed for the exact type of moment the nation is experiencing right now.

Beginning November 1, SNAP benefits will not be delivered. These benefits are commonly known as food stamps. For California residents SNAP is known as CalFresh. California has more than 5.5 million residents who rely on this program and those residents include one out of every eight children in the state. California alone sends out more than 1 billion dollars in SNAP benefits per month. Without those benefits millions of families in the state will go without basic food for their household and no state program is large or powerful enough to replace that scale of support. Twenty five states, including California, have filed suit against the federal government to try and stop this disruption. In previous shutdowns across both Republican and Democratic administrations SNAP benefits were always protected and always continued. This would be the first time since the program became permanent that such a massive shutoff occurs.

The stakes of this moment extend far beyond party lines. The panelists stated repeatedly that hunger is not a partisan problem. Hunger is a public health problem, a family stability problem, a community problem, and a national wellbeing problem. Speakers emphasized that grocery stores, small stores in rural counties, farmers markets, food vendors, school systems, and local economies will experience the shock wave. SNAP purchases make up a significant portion of grocery sales nationally. When those purchases disappear it sends a chain reaction downward through entire local economies.

Jamie Bussel from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation opened the briefing by grounding this situation in public health realities. She stated that the United States cannot achieve health equity and cannot expect its children to learn, grow, and thrive if millions are pushed into hunger. She explained that food programs like SNAP and WIC are among the most effective federal programs that exist because they protect children at early developmental stages, support families through economic instability, reduce health complications, and generate economic activity instead of draining it. She reminded attendees that for every one meal a food bank provides SNAP provides nine. Even if food banks operate at maximum capacity they cannot replace what SNAP does.

Joseph Llobrera from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities stated plainly that this crisis is preventable. Congress already created contingency emergency funds for SNAP. Those funds can be used now. He also warned that this shutdown crisis is happening on top of long term cuts already passed earlier this year that will remove nearly two hundred billion dollars from the SNAP program over the next decade. In addition, new work requirement rules will remove eligibility for even more people who already struggle to find consistent full time employment due to unstable labor markets, age, disability, homelessness, and previously accepted exemptions.

These changes would eliminate or heavily reduce SNAP support for millions of Americans even after the shutdown ends. Llobrera explained that this is not only about losing SNAP. It will remove eligibility for school lunch programs and summer food programs for children who rely on nutrition through multiple channels. The consequences multiply quickly.

Gina Plata Nino from the Food Research and Action Center challenged the framing that this situation is an issue of complicated bureaucracy. She affirmed that the federal government could act now. She stated that the President could direct USDA to use contingency funds immediately to prevent the cut. She explained the specific technical steps the state processors and federal agencies take during the first week of every month to ensure funds are in place for each EBT card. She repeated that time is nearly gone and this delay is now threatening the ability for processors to get funds loaded in time even if the President changed direction today.

The briefing also highlighted who is going to take the direct blow from this collapse. Families with children. Seniors on fixed income. People with disabilities. Veterans. Workers who already have jobs and still struggle to afford food because wages do not match costs. This cut is happening while food prices remain extremely high nationwide. Many speakers called this a perfect storm of political breakdown, economic pressure, and human suffering.

This story is not only national. This is extremely local. Every community in America will feel this. Every local newsroom. Every grocery store. Every family network. Hunger will show up in churches, schools, shelters, parking lots, lunchrooms, breakrooms, and local ballot boxes. This briefing made clear that this crisis is not abstract. It is immediate. It is avoidable. And it is a test of what type of nation the United States is willing to be toward its own people.

Speakers encouraged people to help each other however they can in the meantime. Support your local food banks. Check on neighbors. Share meals. Organize community support. The government may not be acting. But communities can. Until policy makers decide to protect families again, the people will have to keep each other alive.

This is not just a political fight. It is a human fight. Hunger is not a statistic. Hunger is a child sitting at a table with no food. Hunger is a parent choosing between rent and groceries. Hunger is a senior who already survived a life of struggle now being told once again to fight alone. The outcome of this moment will reveal what America values more. Politics or people.

Millones de familias pueden enfrentar hambre si SNAP se detiene en noviembre

American Community Media organizó un briefing nacional el viernes pasado sobre uno de los colapsos más graves de ayuda alimentaria que este país ha enfrentado en décadas. A partir del primero de noviembre 42 millones de personas perderán acceso a beneficios de SNAP debido al prolongado cierre del gobierno. Este programa representa el puente principal que millones de familias utilizan para comer cada mes. No es solamente un tema económico o político. Es un tema de salud pública. Es un tema de vida diaria y un tema de dignidad humana.

En California SNAP se conoce como CalFresh y más de 5.5 millones de residentes dependen de estos beneficios. Eso incluye uno de cada ocho niños en el estado. California sola mueve más de mil millones de dólares al mes en asistencia alimentaria. Ningún programa estatal tiene capacidad de reemplazar ese nivel de apoyo si el gobierno federal no libera los fondos. Por eso 25 estados ya demandaron al gobierno federal para detener este corte abrupto. En todos los shutdown anteriores bajo presidentes republicanos y demócratas SNAP nunca se detuvo. Esta sería la primera vez en la historia moderna que millones se quedan sin ayuda.

Los panelistas fueron claros. El problema no es que no hay dinero. El problema es que el gobierno está eligiendo no usar fondos de emergencia que ya existen para este tipo de situación. SNAP tiene reservas creadas precisamente para momentos como este. Se pueden usar hoy mismo. Pero la administración ha decidido no activarlos. Esa decisión pone a millones de personas frente a hambre real. No es teoría. No es un juego político. Son familias que sí existen, que tienen hijos, que trabajan, que están tratando de sobrevivir en un país donde la comida cada vez cuesta más.

Jamie Bussel de la Fundación Robert Wood Johnson explicó que no puede existir equidad en salud mientras la gente tenga que pasar hambre. Ella recordó que SNAP y WIC son de los programas públicos más eficientes que existen porque protegen a los niños desde la etapa más temprana, reducen complicaciones de salud, ayudan a los padres a mantener estabilidad económica y generan actividad económica en sus comunidades en lugar de destruirla. Por cada comida que provee un banco de alimentos SNAP provee nueve. Por eso los bancos de comida no pueden reemplazar SNAP.

Joseph Llobrera del Center on Budget and Policy Priorities insistió en que esto es completamente prevenible. Además del corte inmediato de noviembre ya vienen cambios profundos aprobados este año que recortarán cientos de miles de millones de dólares del programa en la próxima década y también impondrán reglas más duras que sacarán de elegibilidad a millones de personas incluso después de que el shutdown termine. Estos cambios afectarán a trabajadores con empleo pero ingreso insuficiente, adultos mayores sin capacidad laboral estable, personas con discapacidad, personas sin vivienda y quienes ya vivían al límite. Niños que pierden SNAP también perderán acceso automático a programas de comida escolar y de verano. Es un efecto dominó peligroso.

Gina Plata Nino del Food Research and Action Center aclaró que esta no es una situación burocráticamente complicada. El Presidente puede ordenar al USDA usar los fondos de emergencia ahora mismo. Ella explicó que los estados necesitan estos fondos al inicio de cada mes para cargar las tarjetas EBT y garantizar que cuando una persona pase su tarjeta haya dinero disponible. El proceso requiere días. Y ya estamos fuera de tiempo crítico.

Lo que está en juego aquí no es ideología. Es humanidad. Familias en cada ciudad del país van a sentir esto. No importa si viven en áreas rurales, suburbios o ciudades grandes. Los supermercados locales, negocios pequeños, mercados de agricultores y la economía comunitaria van a sentir el impacto inmediato. La gente va a tener que escoger entre pagar renta o comprar comida.

Los panelistas llamaron a la comunidad a apoyarse mientras tanto. Compartir comida. Apoyar bancos de comida locales. Revisar en la misma comunidad quién necesita ayuda. Crear cadenas de apoyo vecinal. Aunque el gobierno esté fallando la gente no puede abandonarse entre sí. Hasta que los líderes políticos decidan proteger a las familias de este país el pueblo tendrá que sobrevivir junto al pueblo.

Esta crisis definirá qué tipo de nación quiere ser Estados Unidos. Si un país donde la política vale más que la vida humana o un país donde alimentar a los niños, a los abuelos, a las madres y a los trabajadores sigue siendo un derecho básico que nadie debería perder jamás.

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