The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently approved requests from six states to limit what people can buy with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
These changes mean that people in Hawaii, Missouri, North Dakota, South Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee will no longer be able to use their SNAP benefits to buy candy, soft drinks, and some other types of food.
About 3 million people in these states receive SNAP benefits.
Why This Is Happening
There has been growing concern about SNAP benefits being used to buy junk food, such as candy and soda.
Some health leaders, like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from the Department of Health and Human Services, say that buying unhealthy foods with SNAP can make health problems like diabetes and obesity worse.
To address this, states are being allowed to put new rules in place about which foods can be bought with SNAP.
Since the beginning of the year, a total of 18 states have received approval to put these limits in place.
What’s Next
The new restrictions will begin next year—some as soon as January 1, and others
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