Massachusetts anti-hunger advocate fasts to protest Trump food stamp cuts​

WASHINGTON, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Anti-hunger advocate Liz Wills-O'Gilvie, 63, said she has not eaten for 15 days in a bid to push Governor Maura Healey to raise funding for Massachusetts' shrinking food stamp program.

By consuming only water, electrolytes and glucose pills, Wills-O'Gilvie, whom Healey last year appointed to an anti-hunger task force, aims to draw attention to rising food insecurity due to cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

"I know what (hunger) looks and feels like," said Wills-O'Gilvie, who directs the Springfield Food Policy Council and the food justice organization Gardening the Community.

More than 5.3 million people across the U.S. have lost SNAP benefits since President Donald Trump made sweeping changes to the program in his 2025 tax and spending law , according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data.

Rising food insecurity coupled with higher grocery bills have strained low-income households across the U.S. ahead of the November midterm elections.

U.S. states have raced to implement the changes and some have tightened the SNAP application process to avoid new federal penalties associated with incorrect benefit calculations.

Massachusetts' Department of Transitional Assistance, which administers SNAP, said enrollment is down by nearly 182,000 people, including nearly 65,000 children.

DTA staff are overwhelmed and people are losing benefits because they cannot reach caseworkers, said Wills-O'Gilvie, whom Healey appointed to a state Anti-Hunger Task Force created last July after Trump's law passed. Wills-O'Gilvie said she spoke last week with Healey, who told her she was working on the issue.

According to DTA data, the agency has seen a 9% rise in daily calls since last year, with about 47% unable to connect, up from about 37%.

A DTA spokesperson said the agency has hired 118 new caseworkers since the start of the year among other efforts to help people stay on SNAP.

"We will continue doing everything we can to make sure families, seniors, veterans and people with disabilities have access to the food assistance they need," the spokesperson said.

Now unable to drive due to her fasting, Wills-O'Gilvie, who suffers from lupus and hypoglycemia, said she has also met with state legislators in her home.

"I can't let people down," said Wills-O'Gilvie, adding that she intends to forgo food indefinitely.

(Reporting by Leah Douglas in Washington; editing by Timothy Gardner, Alexander Smith and Chizu Nomiyama)