Maria Hernandez stocks food in her pantry. She set aside some money each month when she received additional COVID-19 emergency quotas for benefits from CalFresh, California’s “food stamp” program. She estimates her extra food is enough for her and her 17-year-old daughter for two months.
After that, she is willing to do whatever it takes for them to survive, even if it means skipping meals so that her daughter has enough to eat.
The emergency quota, which gives all households the greatest benefits according to their size, ended after February. Hernandez and her daughter’s total CalFresh benefits have been reduced from $600 to $160 per month. Hernandez, like more than 42 million other supplemental nutrition aid recipients across the country, has slashed her grocery budget.
The two live on Section 8 housing subsidies, Hernandez’s disability diagnosis, and CalFresh assistance, which she said totals about $1,600 a month.
With extra perks, Hernandez bought fresh vegetables and lean meats. Now she and her daughter eat what they can afford: ground beef, tuna, mac and cheese, and Top Ramen.
Food pantry produce often spoils within a day, she says.
This sudden nutritional change was reflected when Hernandez visited a doctor for diabetes.
“My blood sugar leveled off, but now it’s going up and down again,” she said.
Although she is concerned about her health, processed foods are usually the cheapest. She has a sales job, but she needs to withdraw her savings before the end of the month to put food on the table. The stockpile in the pantry is depleted day by day.
Hernandez said when she first heard about the change, she was scared, not just for herself, but for people she knew. Hernandez volunteers as a representative of Resident Her United Her Network, an organization that addresses affordable housing and homelessness and helps people getting out of prison.
Food insecurity can affect anyone, said Carissa Casares, a spokeswoman for Feeding San Diego.
“A lot of people just think they’re homeless,” says Casares. “No. It could be your neighbor. It could be your friend. It could be a colleague.”
The Hunger Coalition found that the end of emergency quotas resulted in the loss of 7.7 million meals each month in San Diego County.
Food banks, already strained by record food inflation and rising transportation costs, report being unable to meet rising demand.
Casares said emergency assignments are irreplaceable.
“There is really no solution to this,” she said. “This is a huge loss for the entire state, the entire country, and food banks simply can’t come up with an alternative.”
Casares said her organization had already suffered from declining donations since the pandemic, and that it “is no longer seen as such a crisis”.
Anahid Bracke, CEO of San Diego’s Hunger Coalition, puts the ongoing crisis in perspective.
“These emergency food losses are worse than if all food banks and food pantries were closed,” she said.
CalFresh benefits have advantages over direct food vendors like food pantries. Dollars are used locally, are available to people who can’t go to food banks, and can be spent on foods that are appropriate for their culture and diet.
But Bracke said many eligible San Diegans are not registered.
They may not realize that the income limit is double the federal poverty level, she says.
People without legal immigration status are not eligible for CalFresh/SNAP, but U.S.-born children are. At least she can get her CalFresh in the household too, if one has legal status.
“They are afraid to apply for CalFresh because they are afraid it will be seen as a public offense against the government and that they will be looked down upon with respect to their citizenship,” Bracke said. “That’s not true.”
The Senate last week passed a resolution that voids a 2022 change that would bar the Department of Homeland Security from considering access to health care, nutrition and housing programs in legal immigrant applications for permanent residency.
The Senate resolution is due to be voted on by the House by June, but the Biden administration has promised to veto it.
The 2022 ruling replaces Trump-era policies that have had a chilling effect on access to nutritional assistance by eligible immigrants, with many of them facing non-renewal of visas, denial of citizenship, I canceled the benefits for fear of becoming an illegal immigrant. Family information will be shared with immigration authorities.
Bracke said her organization has seen legal permanent residents not only enrolling in Calfresh but also canceling children’s enrollments in free and discounted meal programs and other nutrition programs. Stated.
The San Diego Hunger Coalition and other groups in the state advocate extending CalFresh eligibility to all illegal immigrants through the Food4All campaign. California has passed a similar bill for adults 55 and older in 2022.
Registration isn’t the only issue, Bracke said. Many San Diegans enrolled in CalFresh do not receive the maximum benefits they are entitled to.
She said the system was unnecessarily complicated and required internet access, technical knowledge and advanced language skills.
She said that if everyone eligible for CalFresh could benefit, food banks could be used more strategically for those not covered by federal nutrition programs.
May is CalFresh Awareness Month, and Bracke and her team are encouraging San Diegans with access to learn about the system and help others register.
She said no one should be ashamed of asking for benefits.
“If you look at salaries and cost of living, the numbers don’t work,” says Bracke. “So it’s not really a sign of personal failure. It’s just a matter of capital.”
Brakke and other supporters are eyeing a bill that, if approved, would increase CalFresh’s minimum monthly benefit from $23 to $50.
That’s almost enough growth to cover a gallon of milk and 12 eggs each week.
Even before the pandemic, New Jersey was above the federal minimum of $50 a month.and it is has already exceeded the increase Increase to $95 a month to offset the termination of emergency benefits during a period of record grocery prices.
Massachusetts has passed temporary increase As an “offramp” to benefits in the COVID-19 era.
Similar bills are under consideration in other states.
Meanwhile, Hernandez’s stockpile is running out.