Cuts to food stamps linked to rising food insecurity and declining health for millions of Americans

In a new report, health policy experts at Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Center for Outcomes Research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) showed significant increases in food insecurity and poor physical health following the end of federal pandemic-era emergency assistance programs. The investigators’ findings are published in JAMA.

During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, food insecurity spiked dramatically due to increases in unemployment and economic hardship. In response, Congress provided the largest-ever temporary increase to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, a federal program that provides benefits for more than 40 million low-income Americans to buy food each month. When the COVID-era SNAP increase ended nationwide in March 2023, it left many families with $90 to $250 less in food assistance each month.

“The increase in poor physical health following reductions in SNAP benefits was comparable in magnitude to the declines in physical health observed nationally during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Rishi Wadhera, MD, MPP, MPhil, associate director of the Smith Center, and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School.

These findings come at an important time as Congress is deliberating budget cuts that could reduce SNAP benefits. A United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) program that serves approximately 12% of the nation, SNAP recipients represent some of the most vulnerable Americans—40% to 45% of enrollees are children under 18; the majority of adult participants are employed at low wage jobs; 20% are older than 65 or disabled.

Wadhera and colleagues’ study suggests that cutting benefits in this program may directly impact their physical health.

“Increases in food insecurity may have had spillover effects that worsened physical health, such as the exacerbation of diet-sensitive conditions, consumption of lower-quality but more affordable food, or the pressures of competing financial demands,” said lead author, Michael Liu, MD.

In a new report, health policy experts at Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Center for Outcomes Research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) showed significant increases in food insecurity and poor physical health following the end of federal pandemic-era emergency assistance programs. The investigators’ findings are published in JAMA.

During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, food insecurity spiked dramatically due to increases in unemployment and economic hardship. In response, Congress provided the largest-ever temporary increase to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, a federal program that provides benefits for more than 40 million low-income Americans to buy food each month. When the COVID-era SNAP increase ended nationwide in March 2023, it left many families with $90 to $250 less in food assistance each month.

“The increase in poor physical health following reductions in SNAP benefits was comparable in magnitude to the declines in physical health observed nationally during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Rishi Wadhera, MD, MPP, MPhil, associate director of the Smith Center, and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School.

These findings come at an important time as Congress is deliberating budget cuts that could reduce SNAP benefits. A United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) program that serves approximately 12% of the nation, SNAP recipients represent some of the most vulnerable Americans—40% to 45% of enrollees are children under 18; the majority of adult participants are employed at low wage jobs; 20% are older than 65 or disabled.

Wadhera and colleagues’ study suggests that cutting benefits in this program may directly impact their physical health.

“Increases in food insecurity may have had spillover effects that worsened physical health, such as the exacerbation of diet-sensitive conditions, consumption of lower-quality but more affordable food, or the pressures of competing financial demands,” said lead author, Michael Liu, MD.