According to the Wall Street Journal, as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to “Make America Healthy Again,” the US Department of Agriculture is expediting state requests to remove soda and candy from eligible food stamp purchases.
Republican-led states seek to prohibit certain SNAP purchases.
On Tuesday, April 15, Arkansas and Indiana both requested USDA approval to make changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The requests came on the same day that Idaho’s governor signed legislation prohibiting the use of SNAP to purchase candy and soda.
Republicans control all three states.
The Republican governors of West Virginia and Utah have indicated that they intend to impose similar restrictions on their food-aid programs.
Part of the plan to’make America healthy again’
The “Make America Healthy Again” movement, led by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has prioritized the removal of soda and junk food from items covered by the federal food-aid program.
On her first full day in office, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins urged governors to propose pilot programs that would test changes to SNAP.
Previously, the USDA refused to grant state waivers to modify SNAP. However, Rollins stated that the Trump administration will be different.
What have critics said?
Critics of the plan argued that the federal and state governments had provided no evidence that doing so would have a significant impact on Americans’ health.
Opponents of the state proposals claimed that the definitions of candy and soda are too broad, leaving the door open to banning items such as granola bars and juice. Others are concerned that the changes will cause grocery stores to stop accepting SNAP altogether.
