目录表
Federal legislation commonly known as the farm bill should really be called the 食品和农场 bill, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is one big reason why. 作为食品和农业法案下最大的单一项目, SNAP is the first line of defense against hunger and food insecurity for tens of millions of US households. 这是一项可靠的投资，可以帮助参与者养家糊口, 它的好处波及到整个社区. 但近年来, this cost-effective program has come under repeated attack by foes seeking to reduce or eliminate benefits for millions of low-income people.
Such legislative attacks are rooted in persistent, divisive myths about the program. 事实上, there's plenty of evidence showing that SNAP's benefits cut across demographic and geographic lines, 帮助农村的个人和家庭, 城市, 郊区社区. SNAP是一个全国应该能够团结起来的项目.
一个有效的程序
联邦预算中最大的营养安全网, SNAP为2200多万美国家庭提供服务. 2021年，该计划解除了一些限制 2.800万人 摆脱贫困.
更少的粮食不安全意味着更好的生活. 越来越多的证据表明，SNAP确实起到了作用, 对参与者的显著好处. 白宫经济顾问委员会2015年的一份报告, 例如, found evidence linking SNAP participation to a broad range of positive outcomes, 包括:
- 改善出生体重和新生儿健康
- 改善学校表现
- 更多的医疗检查和更少的医院就诊
研究也将SNAP联系起来 自我报告的健康状况更好, 更好地获得预防性保健, 更低的医疗成本.
的se positive effects on the health and well-being of participating families testify to the program's value. 但SNAP的好处还不止于此.
SNAP对农村和城市社区都有帮助
SNAP的好处在整个国家引起反响, 打动了各个年龄段的人, 比赛, 邮政编码, 政治说服. 的 program plays an especially vital role in the economic health of rural areas and small towns. Using the USDA’s most recent designation of “metro” (城市) and “nonmetro” (rural) counties and SNAP usage data collected by the US Census Bureau between 2017 and 2021, UCS有一个惊人的发现:超过72%的前1名,000 counties by SNAP population-weighted participation were in nonmetro (rural) counties.
SNAP的经济效益远远超出了食品
SNAP不仅帮助参与的家庭保持食物在餐桌上, but also creates room in household budgets for other necessities such as housing, 公用事业公司, 运输, 还有医疗保健——进一步扩大了该计划的经济覆盖范围.
This means that SNAP's economic benefits aren't confined to the food industry. 的y're felt across a wide range of economic sectors, from energy to manufacturing.
通过提高数百万人的生活水平, SNAP提供了一个至关重要的经济推动力, 支撑着成千上万的517888九五至尊娱乐岗位. 而且因为SNAP的参与率在低收入地区最高, these positive economic impacts are reaching the 社区 where they're needed most.
谁是SNAP的参与者?
Our analysis found that less than 10 percent of SNAP participants in rural areas are able-bodied adults without dependents. 和城市参与者一样, 其中绝大多数是儿童, 护理人员, 老年人, 或者有残疾的成年人.
放眼整个美国 2020年的SNAP家庭，我们发现:
- 38.1%是有孩子的家庭;
- 28.6 percent were households with elderly people; and
- 21.8%是有非老年残疾人士的家庭.
使SNAP在下一个食品和农业法案中更加强大
We know that SNAP is a smart investment in the health and well-being of families, 社区, 还有我们的经济. 削弱该计划的努力毫无意义.
Instead, we should be taking action to reinforce SNAP's positive impacts. One way to do that is to maximize the benefits of other federal programs that expand SNAP’s reach by making nutritious, 本地种植的水果和蔬菜更容易买到，价格也更便宜. 以下是值得支持的三个好例子:
- 的 格斯·舒马赫营养激励计划 expands access to fresh produce by providing incentives for the purchase of fresh, 用SNAP美元购买当地农产品. It supports local organizations like farmers markets by providing a match for each SNAP dollar spent at the participating markets. 因此，在这些市场上，SNAP福利的价值实际上翻了一番. GusNIP improves food insecurity but also nutrition, as those who use it eat 多吃水果和蔬菜 与其他美国消费者相比. Each GusNIP dollar spent also generates about two dollars in the local community. 然而, because GusNIP funding is not allotted directly to SNAP participants but to a limited number of organizations and businesses, 并不是所有地方都有，资金可能会耗尽. In the next 食品和农场 bill, GusNIP funding should be expanded to reach more SNAP households.
- 的 健康食品融资倡议(HFFI) offers grants and loans to help establish or expand locally owned healthy-food retail outlets in underserved areas. In recent years, approximately half of its grants have been in rural areas. 但HFFI是一个小项目:2021年, 它在134个项目中拨款约2200万美元, 只有47%的申请者获得了资助.
- 的 当地农业市场计划(LAMP) is actually a collection of programs that invest in local and regional food infrastructure, 包括农贸市场, 食品中心, 和合作. 该公司的许多投资都在新鲜农产品供应不足的地区, 随着新市场努力使水果和蔬菜更便宜. And LAMP programs accomplish what they set out to do: according to a 2014 evaluation, 近1500万美元的奖励使新市场达到了3个以上.500万生产者和消费者，当地经济增长2亿美元.每投资1美元，可获得67美元的收益.
相关资源
