Start Date: July 2020

ID #: CAS063

Organization: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Project Lead: Erica Kenney

See more related research

Share


The goal of this project is to use administrative SNAP data from Massachusetts (MA) to identify the prevalence and risk factors for churning among households with children aged 0 to 5 years (n=203,000) and the impact of recent administrative policy changes on churning in this population. In collaboration with Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) in Massachusetts, the subrecipient expects to identify concrete, actionable ways to reduce future churning –knowledge that may help maximize the impact of SNAP among the most vulnerable participants. The specific aims for this project are: Aim 1: to identify the frequency of churning among households with young children, overall and by the number of children; Aim 2: to assess risk factors (household demographics, program participation history) for churning among households with young children; and Aim 3: to evaluate the impact of state administrative policies on the prevalence of churning among households with young children.

Related Research

September 2022

Simplification of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Recertification Processes and Association With Uninterrupted Access to Benefits Among Participants With Young Children

In the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), families may temporarily lose benefits for which they are still eligible because of administrative issues. This lapse in benefits, referred to as churning, increases the risk of food insecurity for families, which is linked with poorer health. This study examined the rate of churning among SNAP participants with More

September 2023

Applied Research Framework: A Guide to Creating Impactful WIC Research Projects and Collaborating with WIC Agencies

The Applied Research Framework aims to help external researchers (e.g., academic or nonprofit researchers) plan, communicate, execute and disseminate research related to WIC. This framework provides a checklist to guide research projects, including advice for building relationships with WIC agencies, descriptions of publicly available WIC-related datasets, and more! WIC agencies may also use this framework More

June 2023

Assessing the Impact of COVID-19 Waivers in WIC on Participation, Fruit and Vegetable Purchases, and Nutrition Disparities: A Natural Experiment

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) has well-documented benefits for low-income mothers and children. Yet, coverage of eligible individuals is incomplete, participants do not fully utilize benefits, and dietary disparities persist. It is unknown whether COVID-related changes to WIC, particularly the increase in the value of the fruit and vegetable More