‘I’m Literally Not Going to be Able to Eat:' CalFresh’s Pandemic Benefits Expire This Month

From extra unemployment assistance to free COVID testing and eviction moratoriums, pandemic-era assistance is fading away. The latest to fall are extra payments for recipients of CalFresh, the state’s version of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps. Over 3 million households around California use CalFresh, ranging from families to seniors and students. Data shows these extra payments lifted 1 million people out of poverty. So why are the extra payments going away? And can anything be done about it? Guest: Carly Severn, senior editor of audience news for KQED. Episode transcript CalFresh Info Line: 1-877-847-3663 LINKS: The Bay Survey Your CalFresh Benefits Will Drop in April. Here’s What You Can Do This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca. Jehlen Herdman is our intern. Ericka Cruz Guevarra is the host. Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices