Rachel Gershon
@otherrbg.bsky.social
Lawyer and Medicaid/Medicare/SNAP/SSI nerd. I've helped people navigate health insurance and public benefits since 2004. We need to make it easier.
Views my own. DFTBA
Views my own. DFTBA
14. Food stamp participation associated with improved reading and mathematics scores among children in early elementary school. Frongilo 2006: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16549482/
Food Stamp Program participation is associated with better academic learning among school children - PubMed
Household food insecurity is associated with multiple adverse outcomes in children and adolescents, including poor school performance. U.S. federal food assistance programs such as the Food Stamp Program (FSP) aim to help prevent household food insecurity and its outcomes. Program participation may …
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
14. Food stamp participation associated with improved reading and mathematics scores among children in early elementary school. Frongilo 2006: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16549482/
13. Seniors dually enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare are less likely to need nursing facility care when enrolled in SNAP. Szanton 2017: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28738897/
Food assistance is associated with decreased nursing home admissions for Maryland's dually eligible older adults - PubMed
SNAP is underutilized and may reduce costly nursing home use among high-risk older adults. This study has policy implications at the State and Federal levels which include expanding access to SNAP and enhancing SNAP amounts.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
13. Seniors dually enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare are less likely to need nursing facility care when enrolled in SNAP. Szanton 2017: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28738897/
12. Seniors on SNAP were 4.8 percent less likely to skip taking their prescribed medication due to cost. The effect was even bigger for seniors threatened by hunger, who are 9.1 percent less likely to skip taking medications due to cost when on SNAP Srinivasan 2018: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29267062/
Cost-Related Medication Nonadherence for Older Adults Participating in SNAP, 2013-2015 - PubMed
Findings point to a spillover "income effect" as SNAP may help older adults better afford their medications, conceivably by reducing out-of-pocket food expenditures. When prescribing treatment plans, health systems and payers have a vested interest in connecting older patients to SNAP and other reso …
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
12. Seniors on SNAP were 4.8 percent less likely to skip taking their prescribed medication due to cost. The effect was even bigger for seniors threatened by hunger, who are 9.1 percent less likely to skip taking medications due to cost when on SNAP Srinivasan 2018: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29267062/
11. Among children, SNAP receipt associated with better self-reported health and less emergency department use. Sonik 2023: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36710646/
SNAP Participation and Emergency Department Use - PubMed
We found SNAP participation was associated with lower likelihoods of emergency department use, that better food hardship and health statuses mediated this association, and that effect sizes were larger among children with SHCN. Food hardship relief may improve outcomes for vulnerable children and th …
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
11. Among children, SNAP receipt associated with better self-reported health and less emergency department use. Sonik 2023: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36710646/
10. Seniors dually enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare saw a decrease in hospitalization following receipt of SNAP benefits. Samuel 2018: www.digitalbenefitshub.org/resources/do...
Does the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Affect Hospital Utilization Among Older Adults? The Case of Maryland - Digital Government Hub
Accounting for the strong effects of health care access, this study finds that SNAP is associated with reduced hospitalization in dually eligible older adults. Policies to increase SNAP participation ...
www.digitalbenefitshub.org
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
10. Seniors dually enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare saw a decrease in hospitalization following receipt of SNAP benefits. Samuel 2018: www.digitalbenefitshub.org/resources/do...
9. Seniors enrolled in SNAP more likely to take prescribed diabetes medication. Pooler 2019: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medication Nonadherence in Older Adults With Diabetes
This cross-sectional study uses National Health Interview Survey data to investigate participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and its association with cost-related medicat...
jamanetwork.com
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
9. Seniors enrolled in SNAP more likely to take prescribed diabetes medication. Pooler 2019: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
8. Higher SNAP benefit amounts are associated with fewer emergency department visits for hypertension. Ojinnaka 2018: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program size and timing and hypertension-related emergency department claims among Medicaid enrollees
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a public policy program that aims to reduce food insecurity—a social determinant of health tha…
www.sciencedirect.com
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
8. Higher SNAP benefit amounts are associated with fewer emergency department visits for hypertension. Ojinnaka 2018: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
7. Increases in SNAP benefits associated with fewer delays in getting health care for children due to cost. Morrissey 2020: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31785378/
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Participation Improves Children's Health Care Use: An Analysis of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's Natural Experiment - PubMed
Findings suggest that even a small increase in household resources leads to reductions in outstanding health care needs due to affordability, particularly among children.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
7. Increases in SNAP benefits associated with fewer delays in getting health care for children due to cost. Morrissey 2020: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31785378/
6. Access to food stamps in childhood associated with reduced incidence of metabolic syndrome. Hoynes 2016: www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=...
Long-Run Impacts of Childhood Access to the Safety Net
(April 2016) - We examine the impact of a positive and policy-driven change in
economic resources available in utero and during childhood. We
focus on the introduction of the Food Stamp Program, which...
www.aeaweb.org
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
6. Access to food stamps in childhood associated with reduced incidence of metabolic syndrome. Hoynes 2016: www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=...
5. Reduced SNAP benefits associated with worse child and caregiver health, and higher rates of food insecurity. Ettinger De Cuba 2019: www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/...
Health Affairs Journal
www.healthaffairs.org
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
5. Reduced SNAP benefits associated with worse child and caregiver health, and higher rates of food insecurity. Ettinger De Cuba 2019: www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/...
4. Higher enrollment by older adults in SNAP is associated with fewer hospital and long-term care admissions as well as emergency room visits – and an estimated Medicaid cost-savings of $2,360 per person annually. Berkowitz 2021: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34662150/
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Participation and Health Care Use in Older Adults : A Cohort Study - PubMed
National Institutes of Health.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
4. Higher enrollment by older adults in SNAP is associated with fewer hospital and long-term care admissions as well as emergency room visits – and an estimated Medicaid cost-savings of $2,360 per person annually. Berkowitz 2021: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34662150/
3. "SNAP-eligible youth who experience food insecurity have significantly healthier outcomes compared to food-insecure youth just over the income eligibility threshold." Alfano-Hudak 2022: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35807936/
SNAP and Cardiometabolic Risk in Youth - PubMed
Increasing numbers of children and adolescents have unhealthy cardiometabolic risk factors and show signs of developing metabolic syndrome (MetS). Low-income populations tend to have higher levels of risk factors associated with MetS. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) has the pote …
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
3. "SNAP-eligible youth who experience food insecurity have significantly healthier outcomes compared to food-insecure youth just over the income eligibility threshold." Alfano-Hudak 2022: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35807936/
2. "participation in SNAP led to a population-wide reduction of 1–2 percentage points in mortality from all causes and a reduction in specific causes of death among people ages 40–64." Heflin 2019: www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/...
Health Affairs Journal
www.healthaffairs.org
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
2. "participation in SNAP led to a population-wide reduction of 1–2 percentage points in mortality from all causes and a reduction in specific causes of death among people ages 40–64." Heflin 2019: www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/...
1. The roll-out of the food stamps program in the 1960s and 1970s was associated with a 1.1 year gain in life expectancy, and increased economic self-sufficiency. Bailey 2023: academic.oup.com/restud/advan...
Is the Social Safety Net a Long-Term Investment? Large-Scale Evidence From the Food Stamps Program
Abstract. We use novel, large-scale data on 17.5 million Americans to study how a policy-driven increase in economic resources affects children's long-term
academic.oup.com
November 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
1. The roll-out of the food stamps program in the 1960s and 1970s was associated with a 1.1 year gain in life expectancy, and increased economic self-sufficiency. Bailey 2023: academic.oup.com/restud/advan...
7. Reconciliation cuts off multiple access points to health coverage for lawfully present immigrant older adults, including breaking the Medicare promise and disenrolling older adults who have met their 40 work quarters paying into the system. justiceinaging.org/broken-promi...
Broken Promises: Republicans’ Budget Reconciliation Bill Would Cut Medicare - Justice in Aging
The OBBBA takes direct aim at Medicare, gutting eligibility and restricting access to benefits, while also cutting Medicaid in ways that would harm people who are dually eligible for both programs. Fo...
justiceinaging.org
June 25, 2025 at 2:08 PM
7. Reconciliation cuts off multiple access points to health coverage for lawfully present immigrant older adults, including breaking the Medicare promise and disenrolling older adults who have met their 40 work quarters paying into the system. justiceinaging.org/broken-promi...
6. Reconciliation drops Medicaid coverage for people who are eligible and need time getting paperwork together, including when an older adult is in a nursing home. www.justiceinaging.org/wp-content/u...
www.justiceinaging.org
June 25, 2025 at 2:08 PM
6. Reconciliation drops Medicaid coverage for people who are eligible and need time getting paperwork together, including when an older adult is in a nursing home. www.justiceinaging.org/wp-content/u...
5. Reconciliation makes it harder for older adults to access long-term care and keep their homes. justiceinaging.org/states-recou...
When States Recoup Medicaid Costs by Seizing Family Homes, Poor Families Suffer While State Budgets Are Barely Affected - Justice in Aging
The burden of Medicaid recovery can push families into poverty or homelessness, while any “recovered” funds cover only a small portion of Medicaid expenditures.
justiceinaging.org
June 25, 2025 at 2:08 PM
5. Reconciliation makes it harder for older adults to access long-term care and keep their homes. justiceinaging.org/states-recou...
4. Reconciliation stops a rule that would have saved an estimated 13,000 lives in nursing homes annually. www.warren.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
www.warren.senate.gov
June 25, 2025 at 2:08 PM
4. Reconciliation stops a rule that would have saved an estimated 13,000 lives in nursing homes annually. www.warren.senate.gov/imo/media/do...
3. Reconciliation stops a rule that makes it easier for older adults and people with disabilities to pay for Medicare, leading to avoided care, worse health, and higher mortality. news.bloomberglaw.com/health-law-a...
‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Threatens Medicare, Medicaid Enrollees
Nearly 1.4 million medically fragile, low-income dual Medicare and Medicaid enrollees could find it harder to retain a valuable prescription drug subsidy if the Republican House reconciliation bill be...
news.bloomberglaw.com
June 25, 2025 at 2:08 PM
3. Reconciliation stops a rule that makes it easier for older adults and people with disabilities to pay for Medicare, leading to avoided care, worse health, and higher mortality. news.bloomberglaw.com/health-law-a...
2. Reconciliation shifts billions in costs to states; historically this action has led to home care support cuts for older adults across the country. www.healthaffairs.org/content/fore...
History Repeats? Faced With Medicaid Cuts, States Reduced Support For Older Adults And Disabled People | Health Affairs Forefront
Cutting federal Medicaid spending would have such negative consequences on older adults and people with disabilities because reductions in Federal reimbursements to states would leave states with toug...
www.healthaffairs.org
June 25, 2025 at 2:08 PM
2. Reconciliation shifts billions in costs to states; historically this action has led to home care support cuts for older adults across the country. www.healthaffairs.org/content/fore...