Food Insecurity in the United States is rarely just about food. It is both a symptom and consequence of housing, wages, healthcare, and national policies and protection. This reality is back in focus as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — the nation’s largest anti-hunger effort, becomes entangled in the ongoing government shutdown.
SNAP, commonly known as food stamps, supports about 42 million Americans each month, or roughly one in eight people. To qualify, households must earn below 130% of the poverty line, about $2,798 a month for a family of three in 2025. The USDA says nearly 39% of recipients are children, 19% are seniors, and 13% are adults with disabilities. California has the largest number of participants, about 5.5 million, largely due its population size. Whereas, New Mexico, there is a larger dependence of about 21% of residents relying on SNAP, which is the highest rate in the country.
When the government shut down on October 1, SNAP funding was among the first thrown into question. The Department of Agriculture warned if the shutdown persisted past November 1, it could no longer fund SNAP benefits. On October 10, it was confirmed by the USDA that the program would run out of money without a new budget. The administration later announced it would distribute only half of the usual payments, drawing from a $4.65 billion contingency fund, far short of the $8 billion typically issued each month. This response came after two federal judges soon ruled that freezing benefits entirely was unlawful, forcing the government to partially restore the program.
Economic Insecurity
The funding crisis was hardly accidental as in July, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act carved $187 billion out of SNAP ,a 20% reduction and the largest deduction in the program’s history. The law shifts costs to states, also imposing tighter eligibility and completely excluding groups like lawful immigrants and refugees. An estimated 90,000 people will lose benefits each month as a result.
SNAP’S reach extends far beyond food security and economists warn that the cuts could backfire. The Economic Research Service estimates that every $1 billion in SNAP spending adds $1.54 billion to GDP and supports 13,560 jobs. The CBPP also provides evidence that for every SNAP dollar spent, $1.50 is re-generated in economic activity. The program is more than a lifeline for low-income households, as it also keeps the economy going.
The Costs of Hunger
Food insecurity is defined by the USDA as lacking “access by all people at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life” and it has crippling health costs. A meta-analysis in Public Health Nutrition found that food insecurity raises the risk of depression by 40%, stress by 34%, and anxiety by 29% in North America. Among Americans with severe mental illness, the rate of food insecurity is 41% which puts them at three times more risk than in the general population, according to the American Journal of Psychiatry Residents.
Another study by the ACP warned that inadequate access to nutritious food can worsen chronic disease and drive-up healthcare costs; continuing a vicious cycle trapping families between hunger and illness. Ironically, one of the largest employers of SNAP recipients is Amazon, owned by one of the world’s richest men. A 2023 Survey, by the University of Illinois Chicago found that 23% of Amazon workers relied on SNAP to afford basic needs. The numbers show that even while working for one of the richest companies in the world, many workers remain trapped in economic instability.
Adding to concerns, the USDA plans to end its Household Food Security Report after October 2025, discontinuing the nation’s main data source on hunger since 1997. The 2023 report showed 47.4 million people, including 13.8 million children, faced food insecurity. Ending it would make it harder to measure the impact of policy decisions and, critics warn, could make hunger “statistically invisible.”
Why SNAP Matters?
Research has proven that SNAP lifted 2.9 million people out of poverty annually across the contiguous states and District of Columbia. SNAP has always long been more than a benefits card. It has fed families, stabilized economies and at the very least, it upholds America’s integrity as the wealthiest nation that promises no one should go hungry.