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Cook County health officials are warning about the ripple effects to public health if thousands of residents lose access to one of the country’s largest food assistance programs for low-income households in the coming months.About 400,000 Illinois residents could lose SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps, by May 1 because of new work requirements, state officials say. The changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program are part of President Donald Trump’s tax and spending plan approved by Congress last summer. Nearly 2 million Illinois residents are enrolled in the program.The expanded work requirements now apply to people up to age 64, up from age 55; individuals who are homeless and veterans; and parents of teens 14 and older instead of 18 and older previously. Individuals will have to work or volunteer at least 80 hours per month to remain eligible.Republicans see the new rules as a way to get more people to work and to reduce abuse of the program.So far, about 100,000 people have filed for exemptions, which include people certified as physically or mentally unable to work or are in drug or alcohol treatment programs. But officials and community groups are trying to reach the thousands of others at risk of being pushed out of the program, Dulce Quintero, secretary of the Illinois Department of Human Services, said Wednesday at Provident Hospital of Cook County Health on Chicago’s South Side. Officials are urging residents to file an exemption before a Feb. 1 deadline. Help for SNAP recipients Update your SNAP information: Illinois created a website where you can see if you meet the new SNAP program requirements. You can update your information by calling 1-800-843-6154.Find a food pantry: Here’s a list of pantries in the Chicago area A person who doesn’t meet the requirements can get benefits for only three months. After that three-month window, they will have to wait three years before reapplying.“Food is not a luxury, it’s a basic human need, and it’s foundational to health, dignity and opportunity,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said Wednesday at Provident Hospital. “When people have reliable access to nutritious food, they’re healthier, more stable and better able to care for their families and contribute to their communities.”The new work rules come as residents also brace for changes to Medicaid next year, which could compound health consequences, such as individuals showing up to emergency rooms with more advanced illnesses, said Dr. Erik Mikaitis, chief executive officer of Cook County Health. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle on Wednesday said people are better off when they have reliable access to nutritious food. “It’s not a luxury, it’s a basic human need,” she said.Pat Nabong/Sun-Times file “Hunger is a medical issue. Limited or inconsistent access to nutritious food directly affects health outcomes, health care costs and quality of life,” Mikaitis said.Food insecurity is linked to higher rates of chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure and kidney disease, he said.Last November, SNAP recipients in Illinois and across the country lost their benefits for days when funding for the program was frozen during the historic federal government shutdown. Kate Maehr, executive director and CEO of the Greater Chicago Food Depository, said that provided a glimpse into what happens when people lose access.“We saw our neighbors, men and women, children, older adults, people who were coming on their way to work, who had to go from the pantry to work, sign up to stand in line for hours … to be able to get food,” Maehr said.Shannon Andrews, the county’s chief equity and inclusion officer, said existing health disparities could worsen if fewer people have SNAP benefits. Andrews said the county is working with the food depository to increase access to nutritional food through two food pantries. Provident Hospital of Cook County Health operates a weekly food…

A teenage girl who was fatally shot Sunday in Austin was on a date with friends when a man she knows began arguing with her on the phone moments before the shooting, according to a police report.Melissa Castrejon, 17, was with three friends and a relative inside a Nissan SUV when she received a phone call from the man, leading to an argument between them, according to the report. Castrejon’s friend drove the group to the man's home in the 5200 block of West Bloomingdale Avenue and honked the car horn to get his attention, the police report says.They drove through an alley toward the 1800 block of North Latrobe Avenue, where the man and his friend were standing and allegedly opened fire on the car about 9:40 p.m., the police report says.The driver crashed into four parked cars and continued driving to Castrejon’s home about two miles away, where they realized that Castrejon, who was in a back passenger seat, had been shot in her back, according to the police report.She was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital and underwent surgery. Castrejon died the next morning, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.Video surveillance footage of the shooting showed two males — one wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, black pants and black shoes, and the other wearing a black sweater and blue jeans — fire shots at the Nissan SUV, the police report says.They then ran to a nearby parked car and placed something in the trunk, and sprinted to a home on Bloomingdale Avenue, according to the report, which added the parked car they had gone to was later towed and held for the investigation.A Chicago police spokesperson said Wednesday that no arrests have been made in the shooting and that the investigation is ongoing.A fundraiser started by Castrejon’s family had raised more than $5,500 as of Wednesday afternoon.“She had a whole life ahead of her,” Castrejon’s brother, Daniel, wrote. “She was young, full of life with intentions of going far in life and someone took that from her leaving her family [and] myself in disbelief and broken in ways you can’t imagine.”Cook County Crime Stoppers is offering a $10,000 reward to anyone who can provide information that leads to the arrest of anyone responsible for the shooting.“This was a senseless act of violence that took the life of a young person far too soon,” Cook County Crime Stoppers Executive Director Paul Rutherford said in a statement. “Someone out there knows who is responsible. We are urging anyone with information, no matter how small it may seem, to come forward anonymously and help bring justice to Melissa and her family, Rutherford said in the statement.Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-535-7867, and to Chicago police at cpdtip.com.