The Republican’s harmful megabill, signed into law this past summer, makes significant cuts to health care, nutrition assistance, and other programs that help families meet basic needs. The legislation includes some of the largest proposed cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in history.
These changes would reshape health care and nutrition assistance across Maine. An estimated 33,000 residents could lose health coverage due to cuts and the expiration of enhanced ACA premium tax credits. Another 28,000 people are expected to lose Medicaid coverage. As many as 10,000 residents are at risk of losing all or part of their SNAP benefits. The bill would also shift costs to the state, with Maine potentially responsible for up to $54 million per year in new SNAP expenses tied to federal cost-sharing requirements.
Kasey McBlais, a working single mother of two in Buckfield, understands the precarious balance many families in Maine face. Living in what’s considered a food desert—the closest Hannaford is 10 to 15 minutes away—she applied for SNAP after her divorce, the first time she’s ever relied on state assistance. “I had to fight really, really hard against that stigma and that shame, and I still feel it,” McBlais said, noting there are months when child support doesn’t come through. Even with $350 in monthly food stamps, she needs to find another $200 to feed her family. Working 27 and a half hours a week—as much as possible without after-school care—McBlais worries that recent policy changes could eliminate the support she depends on. “I’m a professional working mom, and I still have to rely on SNAP,” she said. “What does that have to say about our country?”
Learn more about how proposed changes to nutrition assistance could affect Maine families.
The bill’s provisions would affect working families like the McBlaises who rely on SNAP benefits, Medicaid recipients who depend on stable coverage, and households that use the ACA marketplace to meet basic needs. These policy changes would reach an estimated 161,000 Arizona residents losing health coverage and 10,000 losing nutrition assistance, affecting household budgets, access to medical care, and family stability across the state.
New national data from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities’ SNAP Tracker confirms that the harm to Maine residents is part of a broader, accelerating trend. Nationwide, SNAP participation fell by 2.5 million people — a 6 percent drop — between the megabill’s July 2025 enactment and December 2025, even as unemployment held largely steady, meaning reduced need cannot explain the decline. In Maine, SNAP participation changed by -7%, from 173,157 enrolled in July 2025 to 161,148 in February 2026.
Put simply, the megabill reduces health care and food assistance while providing tax breaks to higher-income households. Additionally, the House Republicans bills propose further cuts, including reductions to housing assistance funding that could affect families’ ability to maintain stable housing. We urge Members of Congress to protect the millions who rely on these essential services by extending enhanced premium tax credits to prevent over 20 million Americans with Affordable Care Act health plans from seeing their premium costs skyrocket and opposing funding bills that further cut basic needs programs.
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“$187 billion in cuts don’t produce healthier diets. They produce emptier grocery carts, impossible math at the checkout line and parents who skip meals so their kids can eat.”
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How state lawmakers are trying fill gaps left by federal changes to food assistance
Due to the Trump administration’s changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, thousands of Mainers like McBlais are seeing disruptions in their benefits, according to Alex Carter, senior policy advocate at Maine Equal Justice, a nonprofit civil legal aid and economic justice organization.
Continue Reading How state lawmakers are trying fill gaps left by federal changes to food assistance
Thousands of Mainers are living without health insurance since premiums skyrocketed
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Terrified moms speak out, say their kids face starvation as SNAP benefits expire: ‘We have nothing’
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