President Donald Trump’s administration is terminating a federal government survey that helps track hunger in the United States. The data has been collected by the U.S. Agriculture Department since the 1990s, and helps state and local policymakers determine funding amounts and effectiveness of anti-hunger programs. The move comes at a time of rising food insecurity, which could be exacerbated by the federal megabill Trump signed in July. The Wall Street Journal’s team reports:
In 2023, the USDA reported that an estimated 13.8 million children lived in households that struggled to get enough food at times, the highest number in nearly a decade, according to the most recent USDA survey. Data from 2024 is set to be released next month. … The cancellation also comes on the heels of cuts to federal spending on food aid programs. The legislation passed by Congress and signed by Trump this summer reduces funding and tightens work requirements for people who get food stamps, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
The move left anti-hunger advocates angry and confused:
Lindsey Smith Taillie, professor in the nutrition department at the University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health, said without the study, the nation would have no real compass on a key health indicator for Americans. “Why would you not want to measure it?” she said. “I think the only reason why you wouldn’t measure it is if you were planning to cut food assistance, because it basically allows you to pretend like we don’t have this food insecurity problem.”
The massive cost of weight-loss drugs
Louisiana is spending $200 million annually to provide GLP-1 drugs, more commonly known by name brands Ozempic and Mounjaro, to people enrolled in the state’s insurance plan. The Louisiana Illuminator’s Julie O’Donoghue reports:
“We’re going to go Ozempic-broke,” Sen. Heather Cloud, R-Turkey Creek, said. Over the past six years, GLP-1 drugs have replaced Metformin, a cheaper, but sometimes less effective, Type 2 diabetes drug. By comparison, Metformin cost the state $2 million annually when it was doctors’ go-to prescription, (Office of Group Benefits CEO Heath) Williams said..
Gov. Jeff Landry, citing cost concerns, recently vetoed legislation that would have allowed the use of GLP-1 drugs to treat obesity, which has become popular in recent years:
“These drugs can cost $1,000 a month per person,” Landry wrote in his June letter to state lawmakers explaining the veto. “Even temporary coverage could set expectations for long-term use that Louisiana simply cannot afford.
The drugs’ effectiveness at curbing obesity creates long-term health care savings, but there’s a question of who picks up the upfront costs. The Washington Post’s Daniel Gilbert reports:
If the GLP-1 drugs were treatments for a disease afflicting a small population, “we’d go, ‘this is fantastic,’” said David Rind, ICER’s chief medical officer. “But if you want to give these drugs to 40 percent of the U.S. population, it doesn’t matter that these drugs are cost-effective,” he said, referring to the ability to pay for them. The scale of who could benefit from GLP-1s, he said, is “probably almost unique.”
Changes to Louisiana unemployment benefits
The maximum unemployment benefit for Louisianans is set to increase slightly – from $275 to $282 – while the tax that businesses pay to fund benefits is set to decrease. The changes stem from an updated economic forecast of the state’s unemployment claims. As The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Alyse Pfeil notes, the updated forecast is due to changes the Legislature made last year to reduce the amount of time people can collect unemployment benefits:
Previously, people out of a job could get benefits for up to 26 weeks. Now under the current scheme, the length of time a jobless person can collect unemployment benefits is tied to the state’s unemployment rate. At Louisiana’s current unemployment rate of 4.5%, people can collect benefits for up to 12 weeks. According to the economic analysis underpinning the updated fund projections, the number of people filing initial unemployment claims is expected to rise slightly next year.
The case for preserving premium tax credits
The number of Louisianans enrolled in subsidized health insurance through the federal Marketplace would fall by 61% if the tax credits that help keep coverage affordable are allowed to lapse. That’s the highest rate in the nation, according to a new report from the Urban Institute. The researchers explain what’s at stake:
Since the enhanced PTCs were first enacted in 2021, they have led to record-high enrollment in the Marketplaces at all income levels. Enhanced PTCs result in lower premiums for Marketplace consumers at all income levels and set zero-cost premiums for many low-income consumers. Even those not eligible for PTCs see lower premiums with enhanced PTCs because the additional enrollment has improved the nongroup market risk pool. If Congress does not extend enhanced PTCs after 2025, we project that these gains will be reversed, and 4.8 million people will become uninsured.
The enhanced PTCs were left out of the federal tax and spending megabill and are set to expire at the end of this year.
Number of the Day
12.1% – Percentage of U.S. population that moved in 2023. The share of Americans who move has consistently fallen since 2006 (16.8%), the latest year for available data. (Source: U.S. Census Bureau via the Washington Post)