KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The government is at risk of shutting down starting Oct. 1. This could put millions of people at risk of losing food assistance. The White House says nearly 7 million women, children, and infants would be affected across the country.
In Tennessee, that number is 133,284. Morgan Walker, a mother of one child in Madisonville, is one of them.
"That would impact us a lot," said Walker. "I really hope that doesn't happen. Because, I mean, right now we're living paycheck to paycheck. me and my husband, and I'm working from home. But that's still, if we're paying $50 a can, we use about, she can sometimes go through a can within two days."
She says she even had to post on Facebook searching for the formula earlier this month. She said she found more cans and people even gave her some, but she would still need to find a way to get more if her WIC benefits were no longer available due to a shutdown.
"I'll have to really buckle down on spending and save as much as I can to afford to pay for her formula," said Walker.
She says she hopes for the sake of everyone who uses WIC, the government doesn't shut down.
"It'll impact a lot of people, I believe, because WIC really, really does help," said Walker. "It helps a lot of people out with formula because it is really expensive. And she's been on cans that have been, like, more than $50. She's been on cans that are like $60 a can and that's expensive. I can't imagine going back on that, and having to pay out of pocket for that."
If the government shuts down, food banks like Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee are there to step in and help. Second Harvest serves 18 counties in East Tennessee, covering nearly 8,000 square miles, according to Marketing Manager Madison Bowers.
She says the Second Harvest Food Bank is ready to step in if the government shuts down.
"Second Harvest Food Bank and food banks around the country are always prepared for these kinds of things to happen," said Bowers. "A great thing about us is that we are mainly community-funded. So we're really grateful that we don't rely on the government in a lot of ways for our funding, to keep our doors open and keep our shelves stocked. So we really rely on community partners and individual donors to make sure that our doors stay open, our lights stay on and our food stays on the shelves and then gets out into our community."
Bowers says the food bank stays ready for anything that could come its way.
"We prepare for things like this," said Bowers. "We prepare for natural disasters, we prepare for political disasters. At the end of the day, we are just here to make sure that our neighbors are being fed."
She says the food bank is expecting an increase in the need for food if the government shuts down. The food bank has more than 600 community partners that help distribute food and resources. They can be found here.