New Proposal Could Mean 3.6 Million People Lose FOOD STAMPS, 1 In 10 Households
'Here’s who could lose food stamps under Trump’s proposed changes,' PBS, Health, Sept. 5, 2019. Excerpts: ~(Changing eligibility requirements to reduce the rolls).
Millions of Americans stand to lose food stamp benefits under a policy proposed by the Trump administration, and new state-level data offers a glimpse of how 3.6 million people would be impacted if this rule goes into effect. An analysis from policy firm Mathematica suggests 9 percent of households nationwide that currently receive food stamps, or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, would no longer qualify for those benefits under this proposed rule. But that percentage could be much higher in certain states..
On July 24, the Trump administration proposed changing one way states calculate who is eligible to receive SNAP benefits. This policy is called broad-based categorical eligibility, and it was designed to give states further discretion to determine who needs food stamps beyond federal requirements. Under this proposed rule, people whose gross income is 130 percent above the federal poverty line (slightly more than $16,000 for one person) or have more than $2,250 in assets, will no longer qualify to receive federal food benefits.
That means an estimated 3.6 million Americans would no longer receive food stamps under the new rule. That’s nearly one out of 10 households — or 1.9 million homes — where people currently receive SNAP benefits in 42 states and territories, according to Mathematica’s analysis of the data. “It’s a large portion of the SNAP population that will lose benefits. For state actors, it’s really useful for them to go in and see,” Lauffer said.
..If the Trump administration’s proposed rule goes into effect, Delaware, Texas, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, Washington, Oregon and Nevada are projected to lose 15 percent or more of their SNAP recipients, according to Mathematica’s latest analysis. All of those states have more generous standards than the federal government’s. Overall, 11 states do not have expanded eligibility for food stamps, which means that under the new rule, they would not see any changes..
The data suggests this policy would hit vulnerable populations like children and the elderly, Lauffer said. Also, nearly 194,000 households that face losing SNAP benefits are home to at least one person living with a disability, and almost 790,000 households receiving those benefits are in poverty... “In the absence of significant change, if we lose SNAP benefits, we can expect increases in both” food insecurity and poverty, she said. As many as 500,000 children also could lose eligibility for free school lunch program, Waxman cautioned. That’s because states that automatically enrolled people to receive SNAP benefits, also enrolled children in the household to receive free school lunches.
The public comment period for this proposed rule ends on Sept. 23. So far, nearly 6,600 comments have been received on this proposed rule change.. More, https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/heres-who-could-lose-food-stamps-under-trumps-proposed-changes
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