USDA: 35 Million Americans on Food Stamps

[AlphaCentauri]

Source: Time

More Americans than ever before received food stamps in June, the Department of Agriculture said on Thursday, with more than 35 million Americans receiving assistance.

The numbers are 22 percent higher than in June 2008. The number of Americans receiving food stamps rose by more than 700,000 people compared to May.
Read "How to Know When the Economy Is Turning Up."


The USDA administers the food stamp program, which was renamed in October as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, through its Food and Nutrition Service. The program helps to cover grocery costs for poor Americans.

The food stamp program was established by Congress in 1964, which was then revised by the Food Stamp Act of 1977.

The average recipient of food stamps in June received more than $133 in assistance. The average household received more than $293. Overall, the USDA distributed more than $4.6 billion in food stamps in June. They went to 35,122,123 recipients.



Read more: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1920538,00.html

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Socialism?

[panader0]

1. Can I haz?

[cutlassmama]

2. A lot of hungry Americans are in need.

Call it what you want, but poverty is still poverty. A person has to be really poor in order to qualify for food stamps. It says a lot about the state of our economy right now. It's the Great Depression II IMHO.

[AlphaCentauri]

3. I think the numbers of poor people in the US are greater than 35 millions

There is people working just to eat and pay rent, in an economic collapse all those people would end up in misery.

[area51]

5. Agreed.

We've been in the 2nd Great Depression for quite a while now.

[LynnTheDem]

4. STOP FOODSTAMPS!!1! It's a government SOCIALIST program!!1!

Any and ALL republicans on foodstamps should IMMEDIATELY be kicked off the program.

We should MAKE A LIST of all republicans on foodstamps!!1!













Damn. No matter how crazy batshit insane ya try to sound in mocking jest, it always ends up being exactly what republics actually say & want!

[superconnected]

8. I'd be happy if they were forbidden to call themsleves compassionate.

People who don't believe in helping others, the poor etc., are not compassionate.

[dipsydoodle]

6. That is more than

half the entire population of the United Kingdom to help put it in context. x(

[superconnected]

9. Yeah, but we have way more than double the population of the UK and how

many in the UK are on food stamps so we can compare percentage wise?

Population of the UK - 61M, USA-300M. More than one out of 6 in America is on food stamps.

[dipsydoodle]

14. We don't have "food stamps"

other than for children under certain circumstances for school meals - based on parent income i.e means tested.

[juno jones]

7. Just discontinued mine.

I got them for two months along with unemployment after my break with my last job. My former bosses timing sucked, they were supposed to fire me BEFORE I gave notice.

I just picked up two shifts at another restaurant so I am close to full time. Food has never worried me much since I started cooking. It's always available at work and If I shop right and do all the cooking we can get by on less than $100 a week for three.

I'd: a) Rather have someone who needs it more get it, and b) Rather not be means tested at every turn for what little I do get from the gov. I'm scared as hell by whatever they cook up for healthcare that is not universal. I will be means tested yet again and again, having to provide paperwork to justify my poverty. And this time there's a good chance it will be mandatory, and not just something I do when there is no other alternative.

[superconnected]

10. One job away from it here, but my department is about to be outsourced

to a contracting firm, we think we may be able to keep our jobs until Christmas.

[juno jones]

11. Take time to prepare.

Forgive me if you have thought of this, but if you know it might be coming, stock up and batten down. There will be at least a two to four week gap in applying and recieving benefits. More if your employer is a complete dick and ignores the state's requests for information (technically illegal) like mine did. If you have a head's up, exploit it, ie: if you have benefits, get check-ups and dental work now.

Have your ducks in a row, all paperwork, paystubs, etc. They will ask for all of it and more...

Good luck. :hug:

[superconnected]

12. Thanks, I am preparing! Socking away savings etc.

I still have hope to find anther job too. Misplaced as it may be.

[juno jones]

13. Greetings from a Bellinghamster!

There's a good chance you will find something. It's a little slow and boggy, but we still have a bit of cushion up here, it seems. If the pattern holds true, you'll start getting work just about the time the benfits kick in! :D

[elocs]

15. In WI you get a Quest card, like a debit card. I get $16/month.

It's better than nothing, but at least I qualified for healthcare from the state of Wisconsin.

[DollyM]

17. I would love to have the health care option back . . .

When our son turned 19, we lost our health care cards. My husbands medications, even through VA, run close to $100.00 a month. Our income is about 4 or 5 hundred a month depending upon what I can sell on Ebay. (Ebay is getting worse and worse for sales as more people are lowering prices in desperation. It makes it hardly worth it to list anything of value anymore.)
Our food stamps for the two of us run about $350.00 a month which is pretty decent. We are in Illinois now though. I don't know what Wisconsin Food stamps benefits are like. We could have qualified for them while we were there I am sure but didn't apply for them, just used the local food pantry to get by.

[elocs]

18. WI now has BadgerCare Plus for adults without children who income qualify.

I qualified a couple of months ago and got a physical last month and then earlier this week I went in to have a mole removed. For BadgerCare Plus, once you qualify you are in and they do not check your income again until your yearly evaluation which is different from the Quest food stamp program which requires you to report income increases. Initially I was told I would get about $150 a month but it is only $16.

[DollyM]

19. I wish Illinois would cover adults . . .

But with our state's present financial crisis, that isn't going to happen.

[bamacrat]

16. I wonder how many of those are against govt healthcare because it's socialist.

It's like Craig T. Nelson who said he was on food stamps and wellfare but never asked for a government handout.

[Delphinus]

20. What I'd like to know

is how many families we have here in the US - that would tell us more.