LORAIN, Ohio — A week after the government reopened, some families in Northeast Ohio are still feeling the effects of the shutdown. Some tell News 5 they’re still waiting for the SNAP benefits that were interrupted in November.
“It’s rough. It’s really, really rough,” said Patricia Sexton.
The Lorain mother of two reached out to News 5 on Thursday to report she and others she knows hadn’t received their November allotment.
“It is heartbreaking,” she said, pulling up the EBT app on her phone. “This is where they tell you to look for updates and to watch. And every day that you open it and you look at it and it says $1.83, you don’t feel like it’s ever coming.”
Sexton said her family gets about $600 on the 12th of each month and can usually stretch the money to cover most of their needs. The funds help feed both her 4-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son, who is on the autism spectrum and only eats particular foods.
SNAP benefits were paused on Nov. 1 amid an ongoing government shutdown. About 1.4 million Ohioans receive $264 million in SNAP benefits each month, with the average benefit being about $190.
Sexton said the gap in food assistance has forced her family to make additional sacrifices.
“Honestly, there are days that I won’t eat, so I make sure that they can eat… because I’m more worried about my children than myself,” she said.
Originally, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said November SNAP allotments would be fully distributed by midweek. On Thursday, News 5 asked ODJFS for an update.
“ODJFS has distributed benefits to over 95% of all SNAP recipients in Ohio. We expect to be at 100% by tomorrow,” a spokesperson said via email. “Because of the way that funds flow through the system, there are a small number of cases that require manual activity on our part to push them through to the beneficiaries and is a common occurrence that happens every month.”
Despite benefits resuming, area food banks report their demand is still high.
“The compounding aspect of that crisis is people went without those dollars and they still had other bills that needed to be paid, so that creates a lot of challenges as that gets unwound,” said Julie Chase-Morefield, the president and CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of North Central Ohio.
She said the food bank is anticipating ripple effects from the paused benefits. The organization has already increased its capacity for an upcoming Thanksgiving distribution in Lorain County. It had capped registration at 1,300 families, but had such a long waiting list that it will now serve 2,000 families.
“We’re trying to serve as many families as possible, but we’re not going to be able to meet all the demand,” said Chase-Morefield.
She explained the need for food assistance never returned to pre-pandemic levels. And the lingering effects from delayed benefits could put an additional strain on families.
“I want my kids to have the same memories I had growing up,” said Sexton. “And that was Thanksgiving dinner, family around the table just eating and having a good time.”
Catherine Ross is the Lorain County reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on X @CatherineRossTV, on Facebook CatherineRossTV or email her at Catherine.Ross@wews.com.
