Older Americans between 55 and 64 who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program now face a stark new condition: log 80 hours of work or job training each month, or lose food benefits after just three months. The requirement, enacted through P.L. 119-21, strips away a longstanding federal exemption

Last year, a 65-year-old project manager in Ohio picked up a contract gig paying $52,000 a year. She had already filed for Social Security at 64, collecting $1,800 a month. By August, her checks stopped arriving. The Social Security Administration had withheld several months of benefits under a provision she