Maine is seeking permission from the USDA to bar the purchase and soda and candy with food stamps, even though nine other states have had such requests turned down, says the Portland Press Herald. “The move by the department follows several failed efforts to seek the waiver through legislation, including a bill that died in the Legislature this year. This time DHHS will pursue the change through rulemaking.” DHHS Commissioner Mary Mayhew said poor diet choices lead to chronic health problems that drive up health care costs. More than four out of five Medicaid recipients in the state receive food stamps.
Grocers, soft drink companies and advocates for the poor opposed the junk-food ban when it was considered by the legislature in the spring. Some opponents said the ban would not be effective because food stamp recipients could use their spare change, rather than food stamps, to buy sugary drinks and snacks. The American Journal of Preventive Medicine estimates that at least $1.7 billion a year in food stamps is spent on sugar-sweetened beverages. Besides its request to the USDA, Maine said it would increase spending on a program to educate food stamp recipients about healthy diets.