Nutrition Topics

• Childhood Obesity
• Federal Food and Nutrition Programs
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  Quality
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Expanding Nutrition Assistance: The Elderly Nutrition Demonstrations

Historically, low-income seniors who qualify for benefits in the Food Stamp Program (FSP) participate at extremely low rates—about one out of every three—and these rates have fallen in recent years. In 2002, only 28 percent of those households with eligible elderly took part in the program. Low participation rates for the elderly are particularly troublesome because many have unique nutritional needs often stemming from a medical condition requiring a special diet. Moreover, low-income elderly individuals with health problems often have to choose between spending their resources on food, housing, or medication, a choice that can harm their health whatever the decision.

To identify effective strategies for increasing participation among this vulnerable population, three demonstration models—each designed to test alternative approaches to increasing participation in the FSP among eligible elderly individuals—were implemented in portions of six states between 2002 and 2005. The models, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, functioned as follows:

1. Simplified eligibility demonstrations reduced the time and effort it took seniors to apply for food stamps. Applicants did not have to submit documentation of income and expenses, and the eligibility interview was waived. The model was tested at two sites in Florida.

2. Application assistance demonstrations paired elderly applicants with application assistance workers who helped assemble necessary documentation, explained the application, and often completed the forms. This model was implemented in communities in Arizona, Maine, and Michigan.

3. Commodity alternative benefit demonstrations gave households the option of receiving packages of commodities each month, instead of getting benefits through an electronic benefits transfer card. The packages were designed to meet the nutritional needs of the elderly and were intended to reduce the stigma associated with receiving food stamps. This model was implemented in communities in Connecticut and North Carolina.

Mathematica's evaluation of the Elderly Nutrition Demonstrations assessed each demonstration's ability to increase participation, examined which types of seniors were attracted to the FSP under the demonstrations, determined what seniors liked and disliked about the demonstrations, and looked at which demonstrations were most cost-effective.

Findings show that most of the elderly nutrition demonstrations created relatively large increases in FSP participation after just 21 months. For the simplified eligibility model, the demonstration in Florida increased participation by more than 20 percent. The application assistance model produced even higher numbers—37 percent in one county in Arizona and almost 31 percent in Maine. In North Carolina, the commodity alternative benefit model increased participation by 36 percent.

Publications

"Reaching Out: Nutrition Assistance for the Elderly." Executive Summary (June 2005)
"Reaching Out: Nutrition Assistance for the Elderly. Volume I: Evaluation Findings" (May 2005)
"Reaching Out: Nutrition Assistance for the Elderly. Volume II: Demonstration Summaries" (May 2005)
"The Food Stamp Program's Elderly Nutrition Pilot Demonstration." Final Evaluation Design (March 2005)
"Findings from the Evaluation of the Elderly Nutrition Demonstration" (February 2005)
"Food Stamp Program Elderly Nutrition Demonstrations: Interim Report on Elderly Participation Patterns" (March 2004)