Paper details impacts of proposed food stamp cuts
July 31, 2013 | 10:50 AM
A paper released Tuesday by the Health Impact Project provides a detailed picture of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as SNAP or food stamps, and the impact of the proposed cuts in the Senate and House farm bills.
The Health Impact Project is a collaboration of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Pew Charitable Trusts.
The paper says the changes under the Senate bill could reduce benefits for as many as half a million people and that the nutrition provisions of the House bill that failed could reduce or eliminate benefits for as many as 5.1 million people.
The Health Impact Project also notes that limiting access to nutrition could cause health risks and raise federal health care costs. The paper recommends that the asset limit for SNAP eligibility be raised above the current $2,000, that changes in eligibility related to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program should be phased in and that the government should monitor the health impacts.
The paper also includes a lengthy analysis of the proposed changes to SNAP eligibility produced by Mathematica Policy Research.
The Health Impact Project is a collaboration of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Pew Charitable Trusts.
The paper says the changes under the Senate bill could reduce benefits for as many as half a million people and that the nutrition provisions of the House bill that failed could reduce or eliminate benefits for as many as 5.1 million people.
The Health Impact Project also notes that limiting access to nutrition could cause health risks and raise federal health care costs. The paper recommends that the asset limit for SNAP eligibility be raised above the current $2,000, that changes in eligibility related to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program should be phased in and that the government should monitor the health impacts.
The paper also includes a lengthy analysis of the proposed changes to SNAP eligibility produced by Mathematica Policy Research.
