SNAP is the nutritional cornerstone of the nation’s safety net, providing monthly benefits to help millions of people in America to purchase food. A recent reevaluation of the Thrifty Food Plan (TFP) increased the maximum SNAP benefit 21 percent, and temporary “emergency allotments” during the COVID-19 pandemic provided additional support to SNAP beneficiaries in participating states.
The additional SNAP benefits from the reevaluated TFP and emergency allotments each substantially reduce poverty levels, especially among children and historically marginalized groups. Researchers conclude both measures are powerful tools to reduce overall poverty and address differences in poverty rates that arise from broader structural and historic factors.
The nonprofit Urban Institute is dedicated to elevating the debate on social and economic policy. For nearly five decades, Urban scholars have conducted research and offered evidence-based solutions that improve lives and strengthen communities across a rapidly urbanizing world. Their objective research helps expand opportunities for all, reduce hardship among the most vulnerable, and strengthen the effectiveness of the public sector. Visit the Urban Institute’s Health Policy Center for more information specific to its staff and its recent research.
2-min read
CONTACT RWJF
50 College Road East
Princeton, NJ 08540-6614
US Toll Free: (877) 843-7953
International: +1 (609) 627-6000
MANAGE YOUR GRANTS
©2001-
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. All Rights Reserved.