New restrictions on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits are expected to affect hundreds of thousands of people in San Antonio.
According to San Antonio Food Bank officials, approximately 300,000 people in Bexar County depend on SNAP benefits.
With new limitations set to take effect on April 1, some SNAP recipients say they will have to change what they buy at the grocery store.
Rick Rincon, a San Antonio resident, said he has already seen his monthly benefits reduced and is now preparing to adjust his grocery purchases even further.
Rincon, who previously worked as a security guard, said living with epilepsy has made it difficult to maintain a full-time position. As a result, he relies on SNAP to help cover basic food expenses.
While some of the newly restricted items may seem minor, Rincon said certain changes will directly affect his daily routine.
“I can’t get a Pepsi Zero to help me wake up in the morning because of all the heavy medications that I’m on,” Rincon said. “It takes me an hour to sometimes two hours just to wake up.”
Rincon said he was also surprised to learn that sports drinks, like specific Gatorade products, will also no longer be eligible under SNAP.
He said sports drinks are especially important during the region’s extreme heat.
“When it’s hot, you need something like a Gatorade to replenish you,” he said. “This is Texas — it gets over a hundred for crying out loud.”
Rincon said his monthly SNAP benefits were reduced from $80 to $60 starting in January. He described the situation as frustrating.
“If you’re going to lower everybody’s by $20, $30 and then on top of that take away what you can buy — they say you can’t buy this, you can buy that,” he said.
More SNAP coverage on KSAT:
