Millions of Americans will lose food assistance if the government shuts down
While the fight over federal spending is playing out on Capitol Hill, the effects of a potential government shutdown would be felt far beyond it.
House Republicans are struggling to pass the spending measures needed to keep the federal government open past Saturday. A pause on government services would have implications for everything from air travel to public health to national parks to food assistance.
The Biden administration is warning that a shutdown would put vital nutrition assistance at risk for the nearly seven million people who rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
The program offers healthy food, nutrition information, breastfeeding support and other resources to low-income pregnant and breastfeeding women and children up to age 5. It serves nearly half of the babies born in the U.S.
And it is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which would be unable to provide those benefits in the case of a shutdown.