Category: Government Programs
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Food stamp soda bans in Colorado, Iowa, Tennessee and West Virginia still carry no start date almost four months after a federal judge vacated them
Four states that asked to bar SNAP shoppers from buying soda with their benefits still have no start date for those limits. A federal court vacated the approvals on June 22, 2026, and almost four months later USDA’s waiver table shows nothing to replace them. The states are Colorado, Iowa, Tennessee and West Virginia. SNAP…
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Food stamp purchase bans now cover 23 states on USDA’s table, 19 of them with a start date and four stopped by a federal judge
The list of states that want to stop food stamp dollars from buying soda, candy and similar items has grown to 23 on the Agriculture Department’s own table. Nineteen of those states have a target start date. Four have none, because a federal court threw out their approvals. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s SNAP food…
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SNAP households can get food destroyed in a household misfortune replaced, up to a month’s benefits, if they report it within 10 days
SNAP households whose groceries are destroyed in a household misfortune, such as a fire or a flood, can have that food replaced in benefits. The catch is a short clock: the loss has to be reported within 10 days. The federal rule, 7 CFR 274.6, says states replace the amount of the loss to the…
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SNAP shoppers in Colorado, Iowa, Tennessee and West Virginia can still buy soda and candy after a federal court vacated those states’ USDA waivers
Households on SNAP in Colorado, Iowa, Tennessee and West Virginia can still use their benefits on soda and candy, because a federal court vacated the waivers USDA had approved for those four states. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson issued the ruling on June 22, 2026, and the restrictions those states wanted cannot go forward.…
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Low-income surviving spouses of wartime veterans who have not remarried can draw a VA survivors pension of up to $11,699 a year at rates that run through November 30
A widow or widower of a wartime veteran can draw a VA Survivors Pension of up to $11,699 a year, as long as income is low and there has been no remarriage. That is the maximum annual rate for a surviving spouse with no dependents, and the actual check shrinks as the spouse’s countable income…
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Food stamp households with someone 60 or older or disabled face only the net income test, and their medical costs above $35 a month count as a deduction
Food stamps, formally the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, follow a different set of income rules when someone in the household is 60 or older or disabled. Those households only have to pass the net income test, and medical costs above $35 a month come off the income the state counts. The U.S. Department…
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SNAP purchase limits take effect November 1 in Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina and Virginia, where sugary drinks can no longer be bought with benefits
SNAP purchase limits are set to take effect on November 1, 2026 in Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina and Virginia. After that date, sugary drinks can no longer be bought with benefits in any of the four states, and some of them also close the door on candy and energy drinks. The federal Department of…
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Wisconsin FoodShare households get 10 days to request replacement food benefits after outages
Wisconsin FoodShare members who lose groceries to a power outage or storm have 10 days to ask the state for replacement benefits. The clock starts on the day the food was lost, not the day the household finds out how the process works. The state Department of Health Services posted the reminder on Oct. 1,…
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SNAP time-limit waivers for five Oregon tribal areas, including Klamath and Siletz, expire Dec. 31
SNAP time-limit waivers for five tribal areas in Oregon, including the Klamath and Siletz reservations, run out on December 31, 2026. After that date, the program’s work rule can start counting against adults who live there, unless they are exempt or the waiver is extended. The U.S. Department of Agriculture approved the waivers in a…
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Pennsylvania cuts retroactive Medicaid coverage for expansion adults 19 to 64 to one month, down from up to three, starting Jan. 1, 2027 under Trump’s 2025 law
Starting Jan. 1, 2027, Pennsylvania Medicaid will pay for medical bills going back just one month before the month of application for adults 19 to 64 on the Medicaid expansion. Up to now, retroactive coverage could reach back up to three months. Everyone else who applies will get two months, instead of up to three.…