In August 1935, Franklin Delano Roosevelt changed the future of this United States. He set America on a course that said growing old should not mean growing hungry. The passage of the Social Security Act recognized that the economy should work to improve the quality of life for everyone - including those moving into their senior years.
Social Security has single-handedly done more to reduce senior hunger and poverty than any other policy, but it hasn’t fully ended senior hunger. In 2022, Feeding America estimates nearly 7million Americans over 60 experienced food insecurity.
It is even worse news for Ohio. A 2024 study found that Ohio has a 7.2% food insecurity rate among seniors citizens - much higher than the national average of 5.6%. Ohio has high food insecurity among seniors than our neighboring states - Michigan (2.7%), Pennsylvania (3.9%), Kentucky (4.1%), West Virginia (4.2%) and Indiana (4.9%).
Food insecurity among seniors can quickly cause other issues related including elevated risk of diabetes, depression, more days of poor physical health, Dementia, heart disease, and heart attacks, according to comprehensive research over a generation of seniors.
While we might be sliding back on the progress gained since the 1930s, we have an opportunity to quickly reduce hunger among seniors and guarantee another century of better health, and a more food secure future.
Strengthen the stability of the Social Security System: Right now, a person who earns more than $176,100 a year is paying a lower rate of their income as payroll tax into the social security system. America could quickly secure the long-term fiscal solvency of social security by guaranteeing that everyone pays the same tax rate into social security - especially the wealthiest individuals. This will prevent benefit cuts in the future.
Invest in food stable communities: Congress needs to pass a farm bill that builds on successes such as nutrition as medicine initiatives , expand SNAP support for fresh fruits and vegetables, and expand urban agriculture grants. As many seniors downsize their homes, developing local food systems that center nutrition and community will improve the health outcomes and food security of seniors.
Protect our emergency food system: Programs like Meals on Wheels and our food banks are not only providing food to seniors, but community connection. We not only need to reverse funding cuts to these programs at the state and federal level, but expand them to fully meet the needs of our neighbors.
Senior SNAP benefit: SNAP benefits in Ohio are calculated using a complicated formula that ignores some of the budgetary realities of seniors and their minimum benefit is often less than $25 a month. The State of Ohio should pass HB 178 (Williams, Troy) that would increase the minimum SNAP benefit for seniors to $50.
Any of these steps would have a notable impact on reducing senior citizen hunger and the corresponding health consequences and costs associated with senior hunger. Collectively, these investments could revolutionize Ohio to ending senior citizen hunger and dramatically improving the quality of life for our seniors.