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Food Stamp Use at Record High, But Could Be Higher
The number of food stamp recipients in Illinois is at a record high, but there's a segment of the population that appears to be eligible but is going without.

Senior citizens are participating at a low rate, says Diane Doherty of the Illinois Hunger Coalition.

"Of the 1.6 million people [in Illinois] who were participating in the program, only around 75,800 were senior citizens, and it’s not that we believe that the need is not there, because if we look at the numbers of people who are eligible, we find a lot of them are not participating," Doherty said.

Doherty says while senior citizens have Social Security and perhaps some other retirement income or benefits, those who don’t have much struggle to pay for their prescription drug, housing and utility costs, and if they come up short, they skimp on food.

Doherty was interviewed for this week’s Eye on Illinois program, which airs Saturday at 8am and Sunday at 6am on AM 1400 WGIL.

(Illinois Radio Network)
08 29 10 by Newsroom
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