ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Extra folks, together with faculty college students, have certified for SNAP advantages due to the general public well being emergency. Many households that qualify are additionally getting more cash than earlier than, which might be useful with rising meals costs.

Besides about 20,000 instances haven’t been processed by the state, in accordance with the New Mexico Heart on Regulation and Poverty.

“In December of final 12 months, this flexibility to increase SNAP advantages with out reprocessing the entire software ended,” mentioned Vernice Peregrino Pompa with NMCLP. “So since that occurred in December, there was an enormous backlog in SNAP instances, as a result of there’s simply been an enormous variety of instances that have to be processed on the identical time.”

The Heart on Regulation and Poverty mentioned they’re getting calls about shoppers ready hours or having their calls dropped and never getting a name again. There’s even tales of households going hungry as a result of the advantages they qualify for haven’t been re-approved.

“We heard from one shopper for instance, instructed us that he had solely $1.90,” mentioned Peregrino Pompa. “He mentioned the day that I spoke to him that that day he had to decide on between whether or not his canine ate or whether or not he ate, and that he had chosen his canine.”

Peregrino Pompa mentioned these are individuals who qualify for these advantages underneath the general public well being emergency, have submitted their paperwork, and are simply ready for a response.

“The telephone system is overwhelmed,” she defined. “Now we have state company knowledge that reveals that as much as 40% of calls aren’t answered.”

KOB 4 reached out to the New Mexico Human Providers Division and was instructed the USDA’s Meals and Vitamin Providers eradicated waivers associated to the pandemic in January, which triggered a short lived backlog in processing recertifications.

In a press release, the Human Providers Division mentioned:

“HSD is making strides to enhance efficiencies for our clients and dealing diligently to course of buyer data and eradicate this momentary backlog.”

The state says New Mexicans who obtain SNAP meals advantages will proceed to get the utmost quantity for his or her family measurement, however that may expire 30 days after the top of the general public well being emergency is introduced.