Michigan is suspending food assistance payments starting in November until further notice, according to the state health department.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which funds the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, directed Michigan's health department to withhold payments and ongoing benefits due to the federal government shutdown.
About 1.4 million households in the state use SNAP benefits to cover the cost of food, the state health department said. Of those, more than 40% are families with children.
Symone Wilkes, 34, of Detroit, said she supports her family of three on a $600 paycheck each month. Between instant ramen noodles and school lunches and hamburger helpers, Wilkes carefully calculates how she'll feed her sons, 3 and 8. She usually runs out of SNAP money halfway through the month, she said, but it's enough to stretch food between paychecks.
"I'm still trying to figure it out and wrap my head around how I'm going to survive the next 30 days," Wilkes said. "I can't not pay bills. … I have to make sure we have a roof over our head."
Elizabeth Hertel, the director of Michigan's health department, called SNAP a "lifeline for many Michigan families," in a press release Thursday morning. "We are strongly disappointed by the USDA's decision to delay this assistance, and in Michigan, we will do what we can to help blunt this impact."
In past government shutdowns, SNAP beneficiaries received benefits retroactively once government operations resumed. But with the current federal budget in limbo, it's unclear what those payments could look like this time, according to Michelle Lantz, the CEO of the Greater Lansing Food Bank.
Families with money left over from October payments, or from months before, can still purchase food with Bridge cards. Others, like Wilkes, may turn to food banks and pantries across the state.
Lantz said Thursday that she had received calls all day from people asking where to find food. The Greater Lansing Food Bank, which covers seven counties through 300 food partners, just purchased additional food to account for an expected higher demand, Lantz said.
"For us, what we do in a case like this, where we're serving food every day of the year, but when we know there's a unique issue like this that we're facing, we try to stock up on both food and funds," Lantz said.
Lantz said it's not clear how or when the interruption will end.
"We don't know the date that the benefits will start going back on SNAP cards. That'll partially be due to when the government reopens and the dollars can be loaded back onto those cards."
Kate Bauer, a nutrition sciences professor at the University of Michigan, echoed that concern, saying the pause doesn't have an "end point in sight."
Michigan families who receive SNAP benefits get an average of $330 per month. Bauer said families who don't receive this money might eat cheaper food, put expenses on their credit cards, or miss a utility bill.
"It's going to get people into a hole, into a hole that is going to be harder and harder to climb out of, right? You put more on your credit card, the interest rates and the costs accumulate," Bauer said. "And this is going to equal, in the long run, I really think, a lot more than just one month of lost SNAP benefits. It's going to sort of destabilize families' whole incomes."
Wilkes said she plans to make cuts to her monthly budget. It just won't be food. "I'm going to cut out Internet," Wilkes said. "I can't buy books or I can't buy – just a lot of things are going to get cut out, to be real with you, because food – they need food."
Wilkes said she's reached out to food banks and pantries.
"A lot of them are full to capacity, so now that's going to be a struggle too because now I have to travel outside my district, probably go to the east side to see if I can get in one of their food pantries in November," Wilkes said. "And that's going to be really, really hard because I have a car, but my car is not really that good."
Wilkes, who works as a community outreach specialist at an early childhood services organization, said families have called to ask her for referrals to food pantries. Many of them are "sitting at home starving because they don't have transportation," she said.
Bauer said changes to SNAP will likely to continue to knock families off balance. "There's absolutely more to come" following the pause to SNAP benefits, she said.
Since the Trump administration's One Big Beautiful Bill Act was signed into law, Bauer said SNAP has been a target for cuts. Changes include work requirements to qualify for food aid, and ending SNAP access for a number of immigrants.
"At the same time that benefits are being paused because of the federal shutdown, we are also seeing changes in policies that are going to mean that fewer people get SNAP when our government actually reopens," Bauer said.
The result, she said, will be "chaos."
"People don't have the time to figure out, oh, why am I not getting benefits this month or when am I going to be eligible next month or whatever," Bauer said. "The amount of confusion for people is going to be great," Bauer said.
SNAP beneficiaries are encouraged to reach out to their local health department with questions, or to find updates with MI Bridges. For additional assistance, Michigan's health department encourages beneficiaries to reach out to the Food Bank Council of Michigan or dial 2-1-1 for free referrals to local food programs and resources.
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