katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh
@katiebergh.bsky.social
720 followers 250 following 270 posts
SNAP/WIC/Child Nutrition at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Come for the corgi pictures, stay for the food assistance policy.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Aug 13
We've updated our analysis of the Republican megabill's #SNAP cuts based on new info from CBO this week.

Bottom line: About 4 million people, including 1 million kids, are projected to see their SNAP benefits cut substantially or terminated altogether.
By the Numbers: Harmful Republican Megabill Takes Food Assistance Away From Millions of People | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
The harmful Republican megabill, enacted on July 4, will dramatically raise costs and reduce food assistance for millions of people by cutting federal funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance...
www.cbpp.org
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 2h
How to make SNAP errors more likely:
1️⃣Pass a law adding a bunch of complex red tape to SNAP
2️⃣Make those changes go into effect immediately
3️⃣Provide no details about how states should implement those changes for months
4️⃣Then cut federal funding for states' admin costs in half
tyjonescox.bsky.social
Ty Jones Cox @tyjonescox.bsky.social · 2h
At the same time, states are also facing the megabill's huge unfunded mandate for SNAP costs, which is based on how many errors states make in their SNAP programs. But errors will now be far more likely as states rush to roll out these complex policies on an unrealistic timeline.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 2h
Many SNAP participants will start to see the impacts of the Republican megabill's SNAP cuts in late 2025 & early 2026.

But many more low-income people are at risk of losing food benefits unnecessarily because of how the Trump Administration is implementing those cuts.
tyjonescox.bsky.social
Ty Jones Cox @tyjonescox.bsky.social · 2h
Last Friday, USDA issued new info about how some of the Republican megabill’s deepest #SNAP cuts will take effect. This guidance goes beyond what's required by law, setting states up to fail with implementation & increasing the risk eligible people lose SNAP unnecessarily.🧵
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Reposted by Katie Bergh
zoeneuberger.bsky.social
Zoe Neuberger @zoeneuberger.bsky.social · 6d
Apparently House Speaker Johnson described #WIC as having shut down today. That’s not true. USDA has made clear that WIC has some federal funding to stay open for now & states can keep it open when that runs out. (I expect that will be in about 2 weeks, depending on the state.)
zoeneuberger.bsky.social
Zoe Neuberger @zoeneuberger.bsky.social · 7d
Bottom line for #WIC under the shutdown: WIC should continue operating uninterrupted for about 2 weeks (varying by state) & states should use their own funds to keep it open beyond that so babies, young children & new & expecting parents don’t miss out on critical benefits.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 7d
Important #WIC update: With available federal funding sources, WIC should be able to continue operations for now. States should also do everything they can to prevent disruption & communicate with families so they don't miss out on benefits. @zoeneuberger.bsky.social has the details 👇
zoeneuberger.bsky.social
Zoe Neuberger @zoeneuberger.bsky.social · 7d
Bottom line for #WIC under the shutdown: WIC should continue operating uninterrupted for about 2 weeks (varying by state) & states should use their own funds to keep it open beyond that so babies, young children & new & expecting parents don’t miss out on critical benefits.
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Reposted by Katie Bergh
gidlukens.bsky.social
Gideon Lukens @gidlukens.bsky.social · 8d
More than 2 in 5 veterans enrolled in the ACA marketplace will lose their coverage if premium tax credit enhancements expire, out of the 623,000 veterans who would otherwise have marketplace coverage in 2026. New Urban Institute estimates here: tinyurl.com/2bs4aj2j
tinyurl.com
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 8d
Not only is this funding a fraction of the Medicaid cuts it's supposed to make up for, there's preferable scoring for states that align with the Trump Administration's ideology - like restricting the foods SNAP can be used for, despite a lack of evidence those restrictions improve diets or health.
gbenga-ajilore.bsky.social
Gbenga Ajilore @gbenga-ajilore.bsky.social · 9d
HHS Secretary RFK Jr. stated that the $50B Rural Health Transformation Fund is the biggest infusion of federal dollars into rural health.

That is untrue - Medicaid has been, to the tune of roughly $180B per year. Read why the RHTF won't help (with @aorris.bsky.social): www.cbpp.org/blog/rural-h...
Rural Health Fund Will Do Little to Offset Harm to Rural Providers in Republican Megabill | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Medicaid provides health care for millions of people in rural areas and is vital to keeping rural hospitals financially stable. The recently enacted Republican megabill, which will cut $1.1 trillion.....
www.cbpp.org
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 9d
Important reality check from @zoeneuberger.bsky.social on the options the Trump Administration & state officials should use to prevent disruption to #WIC in the event of a government shutdown:
zoeneuberger.bsky.social
Zoe Neuberger @zoeneuberger.bsky.social · 9d
NEW: Despite White House statements implying that #WIC benefits for low-income families would be immediately disrupted if the government partially shuts down this week, the Trump Administration & state officials have several steps they could & should take to keep WIC running.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 9d
The recent news that the Trump Administration is discontinuing our longest-running & most consistent survey of household food insecurity is part of a larger trend.⤵️
centeronbudget.bsky.social
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities @centeronbudget.bsky.social · 9d
The Trump Administration is defunding important surveys and undermining federal statistical agencies, suppressing data that would reveal the harmful effects of the Republican megabill’s deep cuts and leaving families’ struggles harder to track. www.cbpp.org/research/pov...
Federal Data Are Disappearing as Statistical Agencies Face Budget Cuts and Political Pressure | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Federal statistical agencies face increasingly overt politicization by the Trump Administration on top of chronic underinvestment, uncertainty, and recent and proposed budget cuts, all of which threat...
www.cbpp.org
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 15d
Overall rates of food insecurity held steady in 2020 & 2021 despite the pandemic. Food insecurity among households with kids actually reached a two-decade low in 2021.

In contrast, food insecurity increased during the Great Recession amid a less robust policy response.

Policy matters.
laurenhlb.bsky.social
Lauren Bauer @laurenhlb.bsky.social · 16d
"Trends in the prevalence of food insecurity have remained virtually unchanged, regardless of an over 87% increase in SNAP spending between 2019 - 2023."

It was a massive policy accomplishment to have food security stay flat during COVID.

www.fns.usda.gov/newsroom/usd...
www.fns.usda.gov
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 17d
Food insecurity won’t go away just because the Trump administration has apparently decided to stop measuring it — especially with food prices rising & the deepest cuts to SNAP in history beginning to go into effect.
sharonparrott.bsky.social
Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 17d
The Administration acknowledged that it will stop the survey that measures food insecurity, just as tariffs push up food prices and the deep cuts to food assistance enacted in July start to take effect. Congress must intervene to save these vital data. www.wsj.com/economy/trum...
Exclusive | Trump Administration Cancels Annual Hunger Survey
The government has been measuring food insecurity since the mid-1990s but now says the report has become “overly politicized.”
www.wsj.com
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 3
What does this mean for current SNAP participants? In most cases, impacted households won't see changes from this new policy until they renew their benefits.

But USDA hasn't yet provided information on how other SNAP cuts from the megabill will be implemented — so stay tuned.
katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
Some #SNAP participants will begin to see their food assistance reduced or eliminated due to the Republican megabill, based on a memo from USDA on Friday outlining how states must begin implementing one of the new law’s SNAP cuts. fns.usda.gov/snap/admin/e...
fns.usda.gov
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
The megabill sets states up to fail: it adds red tape & cuts admin funding, then imposes extreme penalties when states make mistakes. It sets people up to fail, taking food away from families who are struggling to meet their basic needs. The end result? More hunger & hardship.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
The megabill's cost-shift to states will likely be the most consequential of the SNAP cuts, because states may cut food assistance or even leave SNAP altogether to avoid these massive new costs. Again, USDA hasn't provided any information on this unprecedented structural change.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
States get a 120-day grace period for errors stemming from changes in law or regulations. But USDA apparently started the clock back when the law was enacted on July 4, even though they have yet to provide guidance on how states should implement most of these sweeping SNAP cuts.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
But states can’t afford to make mistakes. The megabill’s extreme penalties for SNAP errors will soon require many states to pay a % of food benefits for the first time based on their FY25 or 26 error rates — errors that states have already made or will make in the coming months.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
These policies are complex & will add red tape for participating families & state agencies. With the short implementation timeline & deep cut to states’ admin funding starting next year, this substantially increases the odds of payment errors & people losing SNAP unnecessarily.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
And this is just the beginning. USDA has not yet released guidance on deeper cuts in the megabill that will cut or eliminate SNAP for millions of people by expanding SNAP’s harsh work requirement, cutting off many lawfully present immigrants & imposing huge new costs on states.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
This change means that many households will receive less food assistance & some may lose SNAP eligibility altogether. CBO estimates that about 600,000 SNAP households will lose $100 per month on average as a result. We estimate that 500,000 children live in these households.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
What's new: States must no longer use a simplification for calculating utility expenses for households receiving energy assistance, unless the household has an elderly or disabled member. This change starts immediately for households applying for SNAP or renewing their benefits.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 2
Some #SNAP participants will begin to see their food assistance reduced or eliminated due to the Republican megabill, based on a memo from USDA on Friday outlining how states must begin implementing one of the new law’s SNAP cuts. fns.usda.gov/snap/admin/e...
fns.usda.gov
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Reposted by Katie Bergh
kathleenromig.bsky.social
Kathleen Romig @kathleenromig.bsky.social · Aug 26
DOGE staff at Social Security have put the sensitive data of hundreds of millions is at "high risk," which could have “catastrophic impact,” according to internal SSA docs.

This was not only foreseeable, but widely predicted.

www.nytimes.com/2025/08/26/u...
DOGE Put Critical Social Security Data at Risk, Whistle-Blower Says
www.nytimes.com
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Aug 13
We've updated our analysis of the Republican megabill's #SNAP cuts based on new info from CBO this week.

Bottom line: About 4 million people, including 1 million kids, are projected to see their SNAP benefits cut substantially or terminated altogether.
By the Numbers: Harmful Republican Megabill Takes Food Assistance Away From Millions of People | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
The harmful Republican megabill, enacted on July 4, will dramatically raise costs and reduce food assistance for millions of people by cutting federal funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance...
www.cbpp.org
1 9 11
katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Aug 11
Bottom line: At a time when low-income families are increasingly struggling to afford groceries, the Republican megabill means millions of them will soon be losing some or all of the help that they need to put food on the table.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Aug 11
On top of these cuts, all 40+ million SNAP participants will receive less in future years because the law freezes the cost of the Thrifty Food Plan, except for inflation adjustments. SNAP will no longer be able to keep pace with the changing cost of a healthy, realistic diet.
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katiebergh.bsky.social
Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Aug 11
Another big cut to SNAP benefits: CBO also estimates that eliminating a simplification for calculating utility costs for many households will cut benefits by about $100/month for roughly 600,000 low-income households. We estimate about 500,000 children live in those households.
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