As promised and predicted, the Trump Administration has made intense budget cuts to many government funded programs. Although the concept of cutting programs remains very true to most Republican candidates, the specific programs President Donald Trump chose to cut were shocking to many citizens across the United States. Slashing the Department of Health and Human Services, the Trump Administration endangers many life saving programs.
Meals on Wheels, a program dedicated to “combatting senior hunger and isolation,” faces extreme budget cuts (theguardian.com). Millions of seniors depend on the program to receive the food they need. Beyond the initial Meals on Wheels program run, they also are the leadership organization that support and fund more than 5000 community based programs across the country that are dedicated to addressing senior hunger and isolation. According to their website, Meals on Wheels provides “funding, programming, education, research, and advocacy” to the community based programs (mealsonwheelsamerica.org).
Intense budget cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services brings detrimental ramifications for the millions of elderly who depend on these programs for survival. Spokesperson Nicole Jorwic for Caring Across Generations—a non-profit dedicated to advocating for the rights of aging Americans—spoke on the cuts saying “[Meals on Wheels] is not just a nice to have program. These programs are necessities in the lives of seniors all over the country” (caringacross.org).
The budget cuts have yet to come fully into play, so how the programs will be impacted remains somewhat unknown. However, the Trump Administration has made way for elimination of the Social Services Block Grant—a federal program that provides funding for a range of social services including the main funding for Meals on Wheels. According to theguardian.com, the staff that oversees the Social Services Block Grant programs have all been fired. Furthermore, potential cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medicaid would result in an increase in food insecurity resulting in more demand for Meals on Wheels—a program that will no longer receive funding.
When asked about the budget cuts, Ellie Hollander, president and CEO of Meals on Wheels, articulated “we’re talking about lives here so it’s worrisome to me. Some of our programs are already operating on razor-thin budgets and are pulling from their reserves. If funding goes away, it could result in some programs having to close their doors” (mealsonwheelsamerica.org).
As food costs rise with the economy, the need for programs such as Meals on Wheels increases. With limited government funding, the programs are operating with much less capacity, unable to meet the growing needs.
While lawmakers are unsure of their ability to prevent such cuts, other ways of helping support Meals on Wheels remain open to the public. If you would like to donate, go to https://www.mealsonwheelsamerica.org/take-action/donate/individual-giving.