{
  "abstract": "Background The COVID-19 pandemic reversed a decade of progress in reducing child food insufficiency in the United States. Congress implemented a universal 15% increase in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits from January 2021 through September 2021 to address rising child food hardship.Methods We conducted a difference-in-differences analysis using US Census Bureau data to evaluate the impact of this temporary expansion on child food insufficiency. We compared 9776 SNAP participating households with 18 961 eligible non-participating households, examining changes before and during the benefit expansion period while accounting for demographic and economic characteristics.Results The expansion was associated with a 20% reduction in the odds of child food insufficiency among SNAP participants compared with eligible non-participants (OR = 0.80; 95% CI = 0.66 to 0.97). Hispanic-American households experienced a 39% reduction (OR = 0.61; 95% CI = 0.47 to 0.80), and households with six or more members showed a 33% reduction (OR = 0.67; 95% CI = 0.45 to 1.02).Conclusions The 15% SNAP benefit expansion in 2021 effectively reduced child food insufficiency during the pandemic, with particularly strong protective effects among Hispanic-American and large households. These findings support a universal food benefit expansion improving child health needs during a national health and economic crisis.",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Public Health and Health Sciences, School of Community Health and Behavioral Sciences, Bouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA"
      ],
      "name": "Jiaxing Bao"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Public Health and Health Sciences, School of Community Health and Behavioral Sciences, Bouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA",
        "School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA"
      ],
      "name": "Daniel Kim"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Impacts of SNAP benefit increases on US child food insufficiency during the COVID-19 pandemic",
  "uid": "c2ec2acb-4805-59fb-b26b-d1f65cc19f84"
}