Influence Of SNAP/EBT On Public Health

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Recommended: Effects of food deserts in low income areas

For the last fifty years, the number of United States residents (U.S.) that participate in government assistant programs has increased, including the SNAP program (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). SNAP or EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) that supplements households with cash in the form of a plastic card, that is used for food items the same way a credit card is used. As of 2014, 47 million Americans used SNAP/EBT to benefit their household grocery budget. There are restrictions, such as: alcohol, lottery, tobacco, household items, and some hot foods that cannot be purchased with the card (Bleau, 2014). In California, SNAP/EBT can be used at most fast-food restaurants thus being able to purchase hot food items. However, should …show more content…

Not only did this cause concern for SNAP card participants, but also for public health practitioners. These concerns are the reason for the current trend for healthier food items in participating SNAP/EBT retail locations, changing the requirements thus forcing retail locations to stock healthier food items (Bleau, 2014), requiring all Farmer’s Markets to accept SNAP/EBT cards (Farmers Market Coalition, 2016) , and most importantly recruiting stores in areas, known as ‘food deserts’ to participate thus giving low-income families access to healthier food options (Baltimore Development Corporation, …show more content…

Again, for many, this is all they have access to. There is a correlation between income, access to healthy foods, and food deserts. A study conducted in 2009 (Truehaft & Karpin, 2010) by the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) found 23.5 million U.S. citizens did not live in an area where there was a food store within one mile of their home, that there were 418 rural food deserts, and that these residents had no access to food, let alone healthy food, within 10 miles of their home. Non-rural areas that were also low-income, had more liquor stores, convenient stores, and fast-food restaurants in their area than their higher-income counterparts did, but were still categorized as food deserts because of the lack of healthy food items. The trend for access to healthy foods also includes education as to what foods are best for one’s

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