September is Hunger Awareness Month, and with the largest cuts to SNAP and Medicaid in history now signed into law, food and healthcare could soon be further out of reach for millions of people.

Legislation approved by Congress is projected to cut $186 billion in federal spending from SNAP over the next 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

More than one-third of those savings come from expanded work requirements for SNAP participants, which the CBO assumes would result in some people being romoved the rolls. Another third comes by shifting costs to states, which administer SNAP.

With these concerns over the rising hunger in America, the Atlanta Community Food Bank is asking for help this month.

Fight food insecurity across Georgia

The volunteers at the Atlanta hunger relief organization are keeping spirits up for the month, despite the sobering data on the rise of food insecurity.

"We're all so very fortunate, and you forget about others that aren't as fortunate as we are, so it's nice to do something for someone who's struggling a little bit," volunteer Dionita Cornell says.

Atlanta Community Food Bank officials say food insecurity in America has reached its highest rate in over a decade, reaching over 47 million people facing hunger, including 14 million children. 

In Georgia, one in seven people and one in five children are food insecure. 

"The statistics that we heard in the video that we watched are just astounding, especially locally here in Atlanta. It's way more prevalent than we would like it to be," volunteer Leah Jay said.

Georgia food banks see higher demand

Atlanta Community Food Bank president and CEO Kyle Waide says lines are getting longer at food pantries all across north Georgia.

"Inflation has had a huge impact on families, so we are serving 70 percent more people today than we did just three and a half years ago. We need more food and we need more resources to meet that increased demand," Waide said.

While Atlanta Community Food Bank says they serve 250,000 people a month, they still need your help, especially during Hunger Action Month.

"We often think about hunger as a problem that lives somewhere else. That it's not right next door to us. And the reality is there's just a huge percentage of our community of people who are struggling financially," Waide said.

Which is why they're asking the community to donate or extend their time to volunteer.

"We need a big network of partners, a collaborative network in order to solve this problem of hunger. The problem is way too big for one organization. We've all got to come together as a community to do that," Waide said.

For the month, the organization has created "30 ways in 30 days" to help fight hunger, including volunteering, donating money or food, and holding fundraisers.

You can learn more about the food bank and see how to volunteer here.