‘One of the most effective anti-poverty tools we have’

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, which help feed more than 41 million people in the U.S. per month, are at risk of being cut off in 25 states starting Nov. 1, if the U.S. government does not reopen.

Northwestern health economist and policy researcher Lindsay Allen calls the scenario “a direct attack on working-class families who rely on SNAP to feed their children.”
 
“The SNAP cliff isn’t theoretical, and states are already notifying families that in a few days they won't be able to put food on their table,” said Allen, assistant professor of emergency medicine in the Buehler Center for Health Policy & Economics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Cutting off food assistance to force political concessions is cruel, and economically irresponsible, because SNAP is one of the most effective anti-poverty tools we have.”

• Related: A recent Northwestern Medicine study finds food insecurity in early childhood is associated with worse heart health two decades later. But SNAP participation may mitigate that risk >

“Democrats are holding out because they don’t want to get rid of the enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies, which a lot of American's don’t realize is the only thing keeping coverage affordable for them,” Allen said. “Unless Republicans agree to extend tax credits, people are going to be shocked by how much their insurance is going to go up. They won’t be able afford groceries, rent, medication and more because their premiums are going to go up by 75% overnight.”