Written by
The Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota government shutdown is threatening delivery of some 700,000 pounds of food due at the state food shelves in the next two months.
Colleen Moriarty, executive director of Hunger Solutions Minnesota, says the food comes from a federal program. Moriarty says its delivery depends on a single state employee who can work in a certain data management program.
She'll go before a special master next week to ask that the employee be declared essential.
Nearly 950,000 more pounds of food already in warehouses can't be distributed during the shutdown. Rob Zeaske is executive director of Second Harvest Heartland, which distributes food to programs in 41 counties.
Zeaske says the food includes staples like applesauce, green beans, ground beef and chicken.
The shutdown is also affecting services for senior citizens.
The Senior Linkage Line is a resource for older people and their caregivers on things like finding housing options and untangling health insurance and drug plans. But callers now get a recording that invites them to leave a message but warns there's no telling when it will be returned.
Dawn Simonson, director of the Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging, says it's a popular service that helped about 30,000 people and their caregivers last year. She said the agency was hustling to publicize a local number, but would get fewer calls.
Simonson's agency is also laying off three specialists who help seniors transition back home after temporary stays in nursing homes.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)