More than 5 million Californians will stop getting federal SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps, on Saturday — at the same time health care premiums will be spiking — creating a perfect storm that could shred the social safety net that protects low-income Americans.
The planned benefit cutbacks and price spikes come as lawmakers in Washington, D.C., have made no progress toward ending a nearly month-old government shutdown. As the funding lapse drags on, federal workers have begun to miss paychecks and grants for Head Start preschool programs are expiring, thrusting many Californians toward a financial cliff.
Concerns about the imminent cuts to food programs have injected fresh recriminations into the political stalemate in Washington, but on Tuesday, both sides were more focused on blaming the other for using hungry Americans as leverage rather than finding a solution. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisana, said he would not support passing one-off funding bills for SNAP or other affected programs, only fully reopening the government…