Unemployment-Linked Food Hardships in Medicaid Expansion and Nonexpansion States During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Job losses (e.g., layoffs, furloughs) during the COVID-19 pandemic were associated with higher levels of food hardship including food insufficiency, marginal food insufficiency, and difficulty affording food. However, we find the association between pandemic-related job loss and food hardship was smaller in states with expanded Medicaid eligibility compared against job losses in states that did not expand Medicaid. Our key findings are larger among higher-income households and childless adults–groups generally beyond Medicaid's core low-income population, and they suggest that Medicaid's value as an antipoverty program complements other safety net programs during periods of unexpected material hardship.