How would SNAP and similar government programs be affected by a government shutdown?

How would SNAP and similar government programs be affected by a government shutdown?

September 28, 2023 04:43 PM

A government shutdown would temporarily end several welfare programs, officials are warning.

The two main programs under threat from a government shutdown are the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program and the related Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, which provides food subsidies for pregnant women and children. The program serves nearly 7 million Americans, or almost half of the newborn children in the United States.

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The program provides food, breastfeeding support, nutritional information, and other resources to low-income mothers and children up to 5 years of age. It will be the first to be affected by the shutdown, and funds would be cut off in a matter of days.

The White House was quick to pin the blame on Republicans for any negative effects on the program.

“During an Extreme Republican Shutdown, women and children who count on WIC would soon start being turned away at grocery store counters, with a federal contingency fund drying up after just a few days and many states left with limited WIC funds to operate the program,” it said Monday.

Though SNAP will be isolated for some time, a longer government shutdown would see it affected, too.

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“Now, if the shutdown were to extend longer than that, there would be some serious consequences to SNAP,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Monday.

However, SNAP has enough funds to operate as normal through October, in contrast to WIC, which would run out immediately.

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