Commentary: The Impact of the COVID 19 Pandemic and the Economic Recession on Food Insecurity: Short and Long term Recommendations to Assist Families and Communities.
FOOD INSECURITY is the lack of consistent, reliable access to food needed for an active, healthy life.1 In 2018, the prevalence of food insecurity was lower for the first time since the Great Recession that started in December 2007 and ended in June 2009. Approximately 11% of households without children and 14% of households with children experienced food insecurity in 2018.1 However, this low prevalence was only temporary. The increased concerns of individuals being infected by COVID 19 and the associated lack of immunity resulted in schools and businesses closing throughout spring 2020. The US economy entered a recession in February 2020,2 and families began experiencing financial hardship immediately. The Brookings Institution's Hamilton Project estimated in April 2020 that 20% of households with children were experiencing food insecurity.3 Unfortunately, the families disproportionally affected by food insecurity are also the families disproportionally affected by COVID 19 infection and the associated economic fallout (ie, Black and Latinx headed households).1 The risk for experiencing food insecurity and poor health outcomes are related to the role that discrimination and structural racism contribute to social and economic inequities.4 Those inequities became apparent in the ways families access food and household supplies during the pandemic. During the start of the COVID 19 pandemic, panic led to hoarding of food and household supplies. This affected low income families, who did not have the disposable income to buy in bulk.5 Moreover, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) restrictions prevent recipients from buying nonfood items such as toilet paper, hand sanitizer, and cleaning supplies with their benefits, placing them at a greater disadvantage during the pandemic.6 As families settled into
Family community health