Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
Inquiry. 2021 Jan-Dec;58:469580211005190. doi: 10.1177/00469580211005190.
It is thought that childhood food insecurity rates increased to 18 million impacted children in 2020. In response, innovative policy solutions from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) were swiftly implemented. These innovations must serve as catalysts to create the next generation of food safety net programs. These include the removal of administrative barriers to enrollment, the use of streamlined procedures to access food, the expansion of P-EBT to daycare and childcare centers, and the uncoupling of receipt of benefits from physical presence in schools. Critical gaps also remain. SNAP benefit amounts are often too low, leaving many families ineligible. More realistic benefit amounts are needed, such as those used in the USDA's Moderate Cost Food Plan. Eligibility cut-offs exclude many food insecure families. Better alignment of SNAP eligibility with income levels that substantially increase food insecurity risk are critical. Lastly, creating slower phase-out periods for benefits as incomes rise is essential. Additionally, food insecurity continues to disproportionately impact racial and ethnic minority populations and low-income households. These deeply rooted inequalities in access to nutrition play an important role in driving health disparities, including obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and other chronic comorbidities and must be further examined. Changes to SNAP and the P-EBT program illustrate how innovative, broad-scale policy solutions can expeditiously support the nutritional needs of families with children. While pandemic-inspired innovation offers critical lessons for designing the next generation of nutrition assistance, there remain gaps that can perpetuate disparities in access to food and health. As a community of medical providers, we must advocate for broader, more inclusive policies to support those facing food insecurity. The future depends on it.
据认为，2020 年儿童期食物无保障率上升至 1800 万受影响儿童。作为回应，补充营养援助计划（SNAP）和大流行电子福利转移（P-EBT）迅速实施了创新政策解决方案。这些创新必须成为创建下一代食品安全网计划的催化剂。其中包括消除注册的行政障碍，简化获取食物的程序，将 P-EBT 扩大到日托和儿童保育中心，以及取消在学校获得福利与实际存在的联系。仍然存在一些关键差距。SNAP 福利金额通常过低，使许多家庭没有资格获得福利。需要增加更现实的福利金额，例如 USDA 中等成本食品计划中使用的福利金额。资格截止线排除了许多食物无保障的家庭。将 SNAP 的资格与大幅增加食物无保障风险的收入水平更好地对齐至关重要。最后，随着收入的增加，福利的逐步淘汰期限至关重要。此外，食物无保障问题继续不成比例地影响到少数族裔和少数民族人口以及低收入家庭。获得营养方面的这些根深蒂固的不平等现象在推动健康差距方面发挥着重要作用，包括肥胖、高血压、糖尿病和其他慢性合并症，必须进一步研究。对 SNAP 和 P-EBT 计划的修改说明了创新的、广泛的政策解决方案如何能够迅速满足有子女家庭的营养需求。虽然大流行带来的创新为设计下一代营养援助提供了重要经验教训，但仍存在差距，这些差距可能会导致在获得食物和健康方面的差距持续存在。作为医疗服务提供者社区，我们必须倡导更广泛、更具包容性的政策，以支持那些面临食物无保障的人。未来取决于此。
