Pandemic-era food stamps ending for nearly 30 million Americans

Deanna Hardy of Marshfield, Wisconsin, is stocking up on pricier food items like meat, eggs and salmon before her family’s monthly food stamp benefits are drastically reduced.

"We're really going to struggle," the mom of two told ABC News. "We're going to have to end up going back to cheaper items like noodles and processed stuff because the meat, the dairy, fruits and veggies. It's expensive."

Deanna Hardy is one of nearly 30 million Americans bracing for a significant cut in their monthly food assistance. After nearly three years, the federal government is ending pandemic-era payments on March 1 for low-income families on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

Eighteen states have already ended the extra SNAP benefits, impacting some 12 million Americans. The remaining 32 states and the jurisdictions of Washington, D.C., Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands follow suit on March 1.

The average household will lose $95 a month for groceries, according to a study from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Depending on other factors, including family size and income, some recipients will lose hundreds of dollars a month in food assistance.

Deanna Hardy and her husband Ben are both on disability and rely on a fixed-income to provide for their two young sons. After the special benefit allotment goes away, the Hardys' monthly SNAP benefit will plummet from $960 to $200 a month.

"I don’t think the cuts could have happened at a worse time," Hardy said. "When the extra payments began, food prices were nowhere near where they are now."