Jewish Federations of North America are deeply relieved that the lapse in SNAP benefits is coming to an end and that Congress has funded the program for the full fiscal year, but our relief is tempered by the urgency of what comes next.

 

SNAP benefits must be restored immediately so that families can stop worrying about whether they’ll have to choose between paying for food or their heat bills. For 42 million Americans, SNAP is not an abstract program – it is the difference between hunger and dignity.

 

To ensure these basic supports never again lapse, Jewish Federations are calling on Congress to pass legislation ensuring that SNAP benefits will always continue to be paid out, regardless of whether funding lapses occur.

 

“The recent shutdown exposed how vulnerable children, people with disabilities, and Holocaust survivors are when SNAP benefits are interrupted,” said David Goldfarb, Managing Director, Strategic Health and Public Policy. “Access to food is a basic human need and a matter of dignity. No one should have to endure uncertainty about putting food on the table again.”

 

We also know that the suffering caused by the lapse in SNAP benefits will leave longer-lasting scars. For Holocaust survivors who depend on SNAP, the disruption has been especially painful.

 

“The psychological impact of the SNAP crisis will outlast the physical disruption. For thousands of Holocaust survivors, the threat of being hungry was reminiscent of earlier trauma in their lives. There’s real fear that their food could be taken away at any moment. Food pantries are seeing rising demand driven by that fear and by growing need,” said Shelley Rood Wernick, Associate Vice President of Jewish Federations’ Center on Aging, Trauma, and Holocaust Survivor Care.

 

Jewish Federations’ Center on Aging, Trauma, and Holocaust Survivor Care (the Center) works every day to prevent retraumatization by advancing Person-Centered Trauma-Informed care. To learn more about the Center, click here.