Local seniors, food banks worry what federal food stamp cuts could mean for Valley
Athena Jreij
INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Federal cuts to SNAP under the Senate reconciliation bill could increase traffic to local food banks as more Valley residents lose access to affordable groceries, officials say.
The Congressional Budget Office projects over $186 billion could be cut in SNAP benefits over the next decade. It’s a nearly 20% cut that Debbie Espinosa with FIND Food Bank says they’ll be feeling as more clients walk in needing support.
“We’re projecting more people coming to the food bank because of the SNAP cuts and the Medicaid cuts that are happening. A lot of the times, people that are food insecure are also medically insecure, too, because they struggle paying for their health care bills,” Espinosa said.
For one local senior living community, they fear what the rollbacks could mean for their financial security.
“There’s not a single cut that won’t affect us down the road. Everybody in this building is on Social Security. So that’s definitely a concern of us. Everybody here is on Medicare. A lot of people use SNAP benefits, and we don’t know what’s going to happen with that,” Bryan de Simas said.
While De Simas says he gets little from SNAP, he worries what the snaps could do to less-privileged neighbors.
“I get a little but every bit helps and I’m fighting more for people who can’t fight. I mean, there’s people in this building who can’t even get out of their apartments,” he said.
According to a 2020 Desert Healthcare District & Foundation community health survey, the Coachella Valley’s low-income communities could suffer the most. Data from 2020 found Indio Hills and Desert Hot Springs had the highest percentage of households receiving SNAP benefits, at 23.9% and 17.8%. When considering households that had children and were receiving SNAP, those margins increase, with 100% of Bermuda Dunes households and 92% of households in Oasis receiving benefits.
Espinosa says they’re already preparing for this impact, by increasing outreach to local donors and supporters.
“In California, we are projecting that there’s going to be over 395,000 people that are affected by these cuts. We have to be preemptive. We have to be strategic. We have to be able to build up our resources now. So when it happens, we’re already prepared as opposed to being behind and trying to make up.”
FIND is confident they’ll support the community through this rough patch, but are asking anyone who can to also contribute to the solution.
“We require food, friends meaning volunteers and funds, so we can maintain our resources.”
If you’re interested in volunteering with FIND, visit: findfoodbank.org/get-involved/volunteer/