Iraida Vargas can no longer afford the two kinds of insulin her aging mother needs and has stopped buying fresh fruit and vegetables as billions of dollars in federal funds that help Puerto Ricans buy food, get medical treatment and recover from Hurricane Maria dwindle despite pleas from the U.S. territory
Vargas and her family are among the hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans feeling the sting of what the territorial government says are insufficient federal funds to help the island recover from the Category 4 storm amid a 12-year recession. Her 83-year-old mother is enrolled in a supplementary nutritional assistance program that saw a one-time infusion of $1.
U.S. President Donald Trump recently said that he supports the $600 million to cover Puerto Rico's food stamp shortfall after initially calling the aid"excessive and unnecessary," but he opposes more generous terms involving disaster aid funds, according to Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida. Many in the U.S. territory are closely watching what happens in Washington as they fret about how to cover costs in upcoming months with less money.
She said she was able to buy fresh fruit and vegetables, something she hasn't been able to afford since the benefits were reduced.
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