Residents across Tampa Bay are struggling to afford the cost of living, thanks to cuts in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and increasing health insurance premiums.
The Trump administration said Monday they will provide partial SNAP benefits this month, but this will not help recipients immediately. In response to a judge’s ruling, officials said they would pay out only half the amount people normally get, and it might take a week or two for the money to be available.
CEO of Feeding Tampa Bay, Thomas Mantz, said the number of families in need has increased drastically over the past week. Simultaneously, his organization is struggling to take care of the federal workers they support.
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“We need the government to open back up,” Mantz said. “We need the programs that have largely been in place to make sure that there are good safety nets in our community.”
Mantz said SNAP has the ability to provide nine meals for every one the charity can provide.
“We can’t cover that gap forever,” said Mantz. “This is worse in terms of need than we saw during the (COVID-19) pandemic.”
Congresswoman Kathy Castor (D-Tampa) said 70% of SNAP benefits go to households with children, seniors or people with disabilities.
“Feeding Tampa Bay is not a substitute for SNAP,” said Castor. “Folks need to come to the table in Washington, D.C. to negotiate.”
Recipients of food assistance programs aren’t the only people at risk of losing basic necessities. 4.7 million Floridians who rely on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for their health coverage are seeing their premiums rise because tax credits they previously received are scheduled to expire at the end of the year.
“That will impact all of us,” said Castor. “It will impact when you show up at the emergency department; it will show up in chronic diseases across the community.”
Tampa small business owner Linda Misner said her family can’t afford health insurance anymore after a roughly $3,000 a month increase in her premium.
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“I’m terrified of everything we’ve built and everything we’ve saved could be at risk with just one surgery,” said Misner.
Misner and her husband have the lowest ACA plan and previously paid around $300 a month.
On top of the roughly $40,000 a year plan, Misner has to pay a large deductible before they can even get coverage.
“For the first time in our lives, we’ll go without health insurance,” Misner said. “How is that acceptable?”
Castor said the money currently used in other government projects should go towards people in need instead.
“Billions of dollars that really should be used to make sure that Supplemental Nutrition arrives for kids and our older neighbors,” Castor said. “That healthcare is addressed so that it's affordable in America, so that people can live the lives that they deserve.”
