Food Stamp Participation among Older Americans pre- and post-Welfare
Reform
Eun-Young Choi and Deanna Sharpe, University of Missouri,
Columbia
Longitudinal data from the 1994 and 1998 waves of the Health
and Retirement Survey were used to examine change in food stamp participation
by individuals aged 55 and older pre- and post- passage of the 1996 Personal
Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (Welfare Reform). Nine percent of the sample received food
stamps in 1994, while significantly fewer (6%) did so in 1998. Logistic analysis results indicated that
income increase and 1994 employment increased the likelihood of leaving food
stamps in 1998. Interestingly, older
Americans who had any experience with other public benefits were less likely to
leave food stamps.