Millions of Americans could be cut off from the nation's largest Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in the coming months, according to the American publication Politico.
According to the newspaper, US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins has instructed department officials to continue implementing the July spending bill during the partial government shutdown, which could result in millions of Americans being cut off from SNAP in the coming months. Politico notes that the program provides an average of $6 a day to nearly 42 million people, roughly 40% of whom are children.
The non-governmental organization „Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society“ estimates that the changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will result in a reduction in benefits for an estimated 250,000 refugees and other humanitarian visa holders.
The Politico article notes that the exclusion of Americans from SNAP would be the largest reduction in social assistance in decades. Under the new law, the newspaper notes, families with children and older Americans will have to meet “stricter work requirements“, and states will eventually be forced to cover some of the cost of SNAP benefits. Program participants have reportedly already begun receiving notices of the new requirements. If they fail to meet them within three months, they will lose their eligibility for benefits altogether.
Earlier this month, a U.S. appeals court blocked President Donald Trump's administration from cutting food assistance to needy Americans due to the government shutdown. The court thus upheld a lower court ruling in the District Court of Rhode Island, which had previously ordered the use of up to $9 billion in additional funds to fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.