SNAP

Kansas lawmakers inserted language in the state budget that would restrict what food benefit recipients can buy. Critics say that defining what counts as unhealthy food and drinks is tricky, and the current ban has glaring loopholes.

Cuts to federal food aid have already reduced the food available at area food pantries and meal sites. If SNAP gets hit too, nonprofits worry they won’t be able to keep up with demand.

Advocates worry that tens of thousands of vulnerable Missourians will lose Medicaid and food stamps because of new administrative barriers proposed by the GOP-led Congress. Missouri has already come under fire for failing to administer benefits on time.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture requested personally identifiable information from SNAP recipients including names, dates of birth, addresses and Social Security numbers, along with total SNAP benefits received. Kansas, however, refused the request.

The Trump Administration is asking states to more closely watch the citizenship status of people receiving benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. But some advocates for immigrant families worry the messaging could hurt people who are eligible for the food assistance.

This month, Kansas received a letter from the federal government that demanded “unfettered access to comprehensive data from all State programs that receive federal funding," including Social Security numbers and personal addresses of SNAP recipients.

President Trump's tax-cut bill, which was narrowly approved by the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday, could dramatically cut funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Kansas City advocates say this would harm the nearly 850,000 residents between Missouri and Kansas that depend on food benefits.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins gave a first-ever approval for a state to restrict what’s covered by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program during a visit to Nebraska this week. Other states, including Kansas, Iowa and Indiana, are seeking similar waivers.

A federal judge said Missourians living in poverty "have gone hungry" due to bureaucratic hurdles that the state knows about but has failed to address.

Missouri and Kansas lawmakers are trying to eliminate junk food purchases from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps. But food accessadvocates worry that restricting SNAP will make it harder for recipients.

Efforts to keep junk foods from being paid for by Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, are increasing at the federal and state level. Lawmakers proposing such bills say they want to encourage healthy habits, but some food advocates say the restrictions would have harmful effects.

The federal spending cuts proposed by the Republican-controlled Congress could lead to tens of thousands of jobs lost across Missouri and Kansas health care systems and food suppliers, a new study found.