Topic: Policy
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Moving Child Care Assistance Applications Online Means More Families Get the Help They Deserve
Hennepin County, Minnesota, implemented an online application system for child care assistance, resulting in increased applications, faster benefit distribution, and reduced administrative burdens.
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An Updated Measure of Poverty: ReDrawing the Line
This report recommends updating the methodology used by the Census Bureau to calculate the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) to reflect household basic needs and replace the current Official Poverty Measure as the primary statistical measure of poverty. The report assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the SPM and provides recommendations for updating its methodology and expanding its use in recognition of the needs of most American families such as medical care, childcare, and housing costs.
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What We Measure Matters: Enhanced Performance Metrics for SNAP and Medicaid Would Promote a More Human-Centered Delivery System
This report advocates for implementing human-centered performance metrics in SNAP and Medicaid to enhance service delivery and user experience.
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Documenting Pandemic EBT for the 2020-21 School Year
The Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) program was launched as an effort to address the loss of access to free and reduced-price school meals due to widespread school closures at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As schools reopened in a shifting mix of fully virtual, hybrid, and inperson formats and families lacked consistent access to school meals, these benefits were extended through the 2020–21 school year and were highly valuable to families in buffering the full extent of food insecurity they may have faced during this uncertain time. However, the complexity of administering this program was a fundamental barrier in providing timely support to families, who ultimately went without benefits for at least half of the school year. In this report, we dive into the challenges state administrators faced in launching this new program during the 2020–21 school year and reflect on considerations for the future.
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Early Insights on SNAP Modernization through American Rescue Plan Investments
This brief shares findings from a November 2021 survey of state SNAP agencies about their use of the SNAP ARPA funds in fiscal year 2021, and their initial planned activities for fiscal year 2022 and 2023.
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Loss of Medicaid Coverage During the Renewal Process
This study examines national trends in the use of and spending on oral anticoagulants among U.S. Medicare beneficiaries from 2011 to 2019.
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Executive Order No. 614: Establishing the Digital Accessibility and Equity Governance Board
Executive Order in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts establishing the Digital Accessibility and Equity Governance Board
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Project Snapshot: PolicyEngine
PolicyEngine is a nonprofit that provides a free, open-source web app enabling users in the US and UK to estimate taxes and benefits at the household level, while also simulating the effects of policy changes. By combining tax and benefits data, PolicyEngine helps individuals and policymakers better understand the impacts of existing policies and proposed reforms, using microsimulation models built from legislation and enhanced survey data.
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Rapidly Building Unemployment Services During the Pandemic
Nava partnered with California's Employment Development Department (EDD) to rapidly develop two cloud-based digital services, enhancing unemployment benefit access during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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How Well Insured are Job Losers? Efficacy of the Public Safety Net
This resource is a research paper examining the role of the public safety net in insuring job losers against income loss, analyzing which government programs provide financial support and how benefits vary based on pre-job loss income levels.
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Closing Medicaid Coverage Gap Would Help Diverse Groups and Reduce Inequities
Closing the Medicaid coverage gap could significantly reduce healthcare disparities as 65% of those affected are people of color, specifically impacting low-wage workers and caregivers who often experience economic and health vulnerabilities.
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Making Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Enrollment Easier for Gig Workers
This article discusses the challenges nonstandard workers face in verifying income for SNAP eligibility and suggests policy reforms to improve access