Across West Virginia this summer, thousands of families have lost food assistance benefits they depend on to keep their pantries stocked. In a state where church basements have long been filled with food donated by neighbors helping neighbors, some of the people who once showed up to give are now the ones struggling to put food on their own tables.
Under new federal rules, adults ages 18 to 64 must log 80 hours of work a month to keep qualifying for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)—a bar that now reaches older adults and parents who were previously exempt.
In practice, that means people already struggling to make ends meet face another hurdle between themselves and the food they need. SNAP enrollment in West Virginia has declined by more than 14,000 people. While we cannot say that every one of those West Virginians lost assistance because of the new requirements, the decline underscores what is at stake as additional work and reporting requirements take effect.
For churches and charities already stretched thin, this is not an abstract policy debate. We see the families who come through our doors. We know the grandparents raising grandchildren, the working parents whose paychecks do not stretch far enough, and the people in rural communities where jobs and transportation can be hard to find.
West Virginians have always taken care of our own. But there are some needs that charity alone cannot meet.
That is also true when it comes to health care.
Nearly half a million West Virginians rely on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program for health coverage. These programs provide access to doctors, hospitals, prescription drugs, nursing-home care and other essential services for children, seniors, people with disabilities and working families.
Few states depend more heavily on health care as both a source of care and a source of jobs than West Virginia. In many communities, hospitals, clinics and nursing homes are among the largest employers.
Reductions in Medicaid funding do not affect only the people who carry a Medicaid card. They put additional pressure on hospitals and clinics, health-care jobs, and the communities that depend on them.
That is why West Virginians need Senator Shelley Moore Capito’s leadership.
Senator Capito has spoken about the importance of protecting Medicaid and strengthening rural health care in West Virginia. We are asking her to use her influence to ensure that SNAP remains accessible to West Virginians who need help putting food on the table and that Medicaid continues to sustain patients, families, hospitals and communities across our state.
This is not about partisan politics. It is about what kind of community we want to be.
In the fourth chapter of Genesis, after Cain kills his brother Abel, God asks Cain where his brother is.
Cain answers, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
It is one of the oldest questions in Scripture, and for people of faith the answer is clear: Yes. We are responsible for one another.
That responsibility does not mean that government can or should solve every problem. Churches, families, nonprofits, businesses and individuals all have roles to play. But neither can we pretend that the needs of our neighbors are someone else’s responsibility.
When a child is hungry, that child is our concern.
When a senior cannot afford health care, that senior is our concern.
When a rural hospital struggles to keep its doors open, that community is our concern.
And when public policy makes it harder for vulnerable West Virginians to put food on the table or receive health care, people of faith have a responsibility to speak.
West Virginia takes care of its own. That is more than a slogan. It is part of who we are.
Senator Capito has an opportunity to help make sure we continue to live up to it.
Rev. Dr. Doug Dyson is executive director of the West Virginia Council of Churches.
