The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — more commonly known as SNAP, or food stamps — is a key benefits program that serves more than 40 million people across the country. Now, the shutdown is threatening to suspend benefits, raising concerns over where millions of people who rely on the program will turn to for food.

States, cities and nonprofits had sued to spare millions of low-income Americans from losing benefits starting on Saturday, after the Trump administration said it would not fund them.

Congress and state officials are scrambling to continue SNAP benefits despite the shutdown, but the first lapse in food assistance is expected Nov. 1.

As the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) faces a November 1 cutoff amid the ongoing government shutdown, leaders in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia are stepping up to help low-income families who rely on the aid to put food on the table.

Saturday’s looming deadline to fund the government or risk more than 40 million people losing their food benefits is increasing pressure on both parties to end the government shutdown. President Donald Trump returns to Washington on Thursday afternoon following a weeklong tour of Asia that saw him personally removed from the shutdown talks.

Democrats are working to balance their health care demands and find solutions for SNAP, with Democratic Sen. Ben Ray Luján on Wednesday introducing legislation that would direct the USDA to release available contingency funds to ensure benefits under SNAP and the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program continue during the shutdown.

Update: On Friday, two judges ordered the Trump administration to use contingency funds for SNAP payments during the federal government shutdown. This means no new (SNAP) funds will be added to the EBT debit cards that 40 million Americans and approximately half a million Philadelphians use to pay for groceries.