I was quite disturbed to read in the Clarion Herald that proposed federal budget cuts mean many low-income New Orleans senior citizens run the risk of losing the monthly box of staple foods they receive from Second Harvest. The wholesale value of this food aid is a mere $15 per person, but many elderly people make that last all month. Sad to say, because so many of these seniors lost their homes in Katrina and are living with extended family, rules about food stamps mean they do not qualify for this help, either.
Congress needs to pay attention to this situation. Post-Katrina, poor families in New Orleans are not living in single homes or apartments to save money or stockpile benefits: there is no where else for them to go. So the restrictions need to be lifted as long as the emergency lasts, at least on a case by case basis. Enough people have died as a result of that hurricane; there's no point in further weakening the elderly survivors.
Read more at http://catholic.org/clarionherald/issue/20070317/issue_3_17_07.pdf
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
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