Nutrition Assistance Policies: Changes, Participation, and Health Outcomes

Session Submission Type: Panel

Abstract

Research consistently demonstrates that economic insecurity is a key social determinant of health across the life course. Public policies that provide access to material resources, such as nutrition assistance programs, play a critical role in mitigating these risks. Our panel examines how participation in and changes to major U.S. nutrition programs influence health and wellbeing among vulnerable populations, with a focus on program access, child health, perinatal outcomes, and health behaviors.

We begin with a study examining participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) during the COVID-19 pandemic, when state policy changes aimed to increase access. This paper provides evidence on how state policy differences are associated with variation in WIC participation rates and suggests barriers that may be removed to increase participation among eligible individuals.

The second study investigates the health effects of Universal Free School Meals (UFSM), leveraging state variation in policy adoption following the expiration of pandemic-era federal waivers, which allowed all schools in the U.S. to provide free meals to all students. This paper assesses the policy impact on receipt of free/reduced-price school meals, and diabetes risk factors, including weight status, household food hardship, mental health, and physical activity.

The third study examines the effects of the expiration of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) emergency allotments during the pandemic on perinatal health outcomes. It leverages variation in the timing of emergency allotment terminations across states. The study highlights the potential consequences of reductions in nutrition assistance for perinatal health.

The fourth study examines how variation in state-level SNAP benefit generosity before the pandemic was associated with health behaviors, including smoking, drinking, and dietary behaviors. SNAP benefit generosity was measured based on eligibility and benefit levels under each state’s policies. This study helps explain behavioral responses beyond food consumption and the pathways linking SNAP to health outcomes.

Together, these studies examine how changes to nutrition assistance programs are associated with program participation, health outcomes, and health behaviors. By leveraging policy variation across states and quasi-experimental methods, this panel provides evidence on how nutrition assistance programs shape health across multiple domains and stages of the life course.

Our panel will feature two discussants who will synthesize findings across studies and discuss their implications for policy design, particularly regarding strategies to increase program participation and the potential health consequences. By bringing together evidence on WIC, school meals, and SNAP, this panel aims to inform ongoing policy debates about the role of nutrition assistance programs in supporting the health of children, pregnant individuals, and low-income populations.

Policy Area

• Family and Child Policy

Chair

• Abdinasir Ali, University of Nevada, Reno

Discussants

• Xuechao (Jane) Qian, Ball State University

• Christopher Lowenstein, University of Missouri-Columbia

Organizer

• Guangyi Wang, University of California, San Francisco

Individual Presentations

• Impacts of Pandemic-Era WIC Policy Changes on Participation Rates: A Quasi-Experimental Study - Presenting Author: Emily Dore, Tufts University

• Universal Free School Meals and Children's Health: Evidence from Pandemic-Era Federal Waivers - Presenting Author: Guangyi Wang, University of California, San Francisco

• Expiration of pandemic-era nutrition benefits and perinatal health among low-income families in the US - Presenting Author: Daniel Francisco Collin, Harvard University

• Food Assistance Generosity and Health Behaviors: Smoking, Drinking, and Diet - Presenting Author: KUN HUANG, University at Albany