Mathew R. Swinburne

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (commonly known as the WIC program) is the third largest food and nutrition assistance program in the U.S. In 2020 alone, WIC served approximately 6.2 million participants a month, including almost half of all infants born in the country. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the program to expand benefits and alter its administration in ways that have greatly improved participants' lives. This issue brief evaluates the COVID-19 changes to the WIC program and assesses the current issues with the Program highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. It also provides policy recommendations to ensure greater participation and adequate benefits for participants.

This issue brief examines evidence of racial disparities with respect to COVID-19 infections and deaths, possible causes, and legal protections against race discrimination. It also provides an overview of CSC planning, including key ethical features that may be utilized to ensure that CSC planning incorporates concerns about racial inequity.

More than 13.8 million U.S. households lack the necessary food and nutrition to live an active and healthy life. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) provides financial benefits to qualified individuals that can be used to purchase food. These benefits are based on the USDA’s Thrifty Food Plan (TFP), which was last revised in 2006. A January 2021 Biden Administration Executive Order urging the USDA to promptly update the TFP to reflect the current cost of food resulted in a 21 percent increase in SNAP benefits.

This Table highlights states which have either invoked or facilitated implementation of Crisis Standards of Care (CSC) during the COVID-19 pandemic beginning Feb. 2020.

Earlier this year, New York legalized adult-use (recreational) cannabis with the Marijuana Regulation & Taxation Act.  While it’s now legal for adults to possess cannabis, there are no retail establishments permitted to sell adult-use cannabis. The State is in the process of developing regulations for this new industry and the adult-use market is expected to be operational in late 2022. While New York is focused on creating a safe and efficient industry, it is also incorporating social justice measures, including restorative justice and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies into its new cannabis system.

During the 2020 election cycle, several states utilized voter initiatives to legalize medical and/or adult-use cannabis. While these policy changes align with the nation’s changing perception of cannabis, voter initiatives have met serious legal opposition. Three of these court  cases in particular emphasize the need to understand state constitutional restrictions on voter initiatives and the impact these restrictions can have on the success of an initiative.

This fact sheet provides a review of select state requirements, and additional information as available from certain state or local health departments.

The New Era of Smarter Food Safety Initiative released by the agency in June of 2020 serves as the blueprint for the FDA’s approach to food safety over the next decade. While it builds on the foundation created by the 2010 Food Safety Modernization Act, the Initiative represents a new approach to food safety that will leverage technology and data to create a safer food system.

Overview 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. ET | May 27, 2021Families have experienced unique vulnerabilities as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of the most…

During the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity has skyrocketed. It is estimated that in 2021, 42 million Americans have lacked sufficient food to lead healthy lives. This parallel pandemic of hunger deeply affects America’s children with an estimated 12 million children experiencing food insecurity. Prior to the pandemic the free and reduced-price school meal programs were critical tools for addressing food insecurity, serving an estimated 22 million children. A recent study out of Tufts University found that school meals were the most nutritious source of food for most American school children, further emphasizing the critical nature of these programs. The need for these important programs has only grown with the challenges created by COVID-19.

Several universities across the U.S. have announced plans to require students to receive a COVID-19 vaccination before heading back to campus for the fall semester. Brown, Cornell, Duke, Northeastern, and Rutgers are among them. Some institutions of higher learning, like Virginia Tech, have determined that they cannot require vaccinations because of the vaccine’s Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) status, but this stance rests on shaky legal grounds.

This webinar will present legal research exploring the various statutory protections for medical cannabis patients. It will also present research on the treatment of medical cannabis within state workers’ compensation programs and the developing trend of providing parity with FDA approved medications.