CLEVELAND, Ohio — Nearly half of Cuyahoga County’s food assistance recipients will miss their monthly benefits by the end of next week if the federal government shutdown continues and funds remain stalled — a delay that county officials warn will deepen food insecurity for tens of thousands of families.
In Cuyahoga County, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits are distributed to qualifying recipients on a staggered schedule from the first of the month through the 20th. Based on the monthly schedule, 3% of the county’s 190,000 recipients — roughly 5,700 people — were expecting their payments Saturday.
By the end of next week, 48% will have missed them. The remaining 52% will face the same fate if the shutdown stalls funding past Nov. 20…