From the U.S. Government Accountability Office, www.gao.gov Transcript for: Hunger Among Military Veterans and Federal Efforts to Address It Description: Military veterans are particularly at risk of lacking access to food. And while there are nutrition programs that help veterans buy food, a majority of those who are eligible for benefits do not participate in these programs. We talk with GAO’s Kathy Larin to learn more. Related GAO Work: GAO-22-104740, Nutrition Assistance Programs: Federal Agencies Should Improve Oversight and Better Collaborate on Efforts to Support Veterans with Food Insecurity Released: April 2022 [Kathy Larin:] Veterans have served their country through military service that many experience food insecurity when they return to civilian life. [Music] [Holly Hobbs:] Hi and welcome to GAO’s Watchdog Report. Your source for news and information from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. I'm your host Holly Hobbs. While many Americans face hunger, military veterans are particularly at risk of lacking access to food. There are nutrition programs that help veterans buy food. But a majority of those who are eligible for benefits do not participate in these programs. So, why is this happening? We’ll find out more from GAO director Kathy Larin, an expert on programs for vulnerable populations. Thanks for joining us. [Kathy Larin:] Thanks for having me. [Holly Hobbs:] So, Kathy, what do we mean by food insecurity, and how big of a problem is this among veterans? [Kathy Larin:] Food insecurity is the lack of consistent access to enough food for a healthy, active lifestyle. And it's a problem for many people, but it's a particular problem for veterans. The most recent data that we have shows that about 11% of working-age veterans live in food insecure households. This is higher than among the non-veteran population, and it's particularly high for disabled, unemployed and women veterans. [Holly Hobbs:] So what is the Department of Veterans Affairs role in helping these veterans? [Kathy Larin:] The Veterans Health Administration within VA is the nation's largest health care system, and many, not all, but many veterans receive their health care through VA. And when a veteran goes into a VHA medical center for an appointment, they're asked two questions to determine if they're food insecure. And if they are, they're referred to a social worker or a dietitian for assistance. In addition to that, the VA’s Veterans Benefit Administration provides assistance to all newly separated veterans through two programs; transition assistance and Solid Start. But only one of those programs, the Transition Assistance Program, is required to assist veterans with food insecurity. [Holly Hobbs:] So, if the VA has these programs, why are some veterans still going hungry? [Kathy Larin:] So one big challenge is making sure that all veterans have access to information related to food insecurity. As I mentioned before, not all veterans get their health care from VHA, so they aren't regularly screened. The Solid Start program, which I mentioned earlier, checks in with veterans throughout their first year after separation. But that program isn't required to provide information on food insecurity. [Holly Hobbs:] And, given these gaps, is the VA assessing its efforts to reach these populations? [Kathy Larin:] At this point, no. VA is not monitoring their own efforts to make sure veterans actually receive the assistance that they need. For example, they don't keep track of how many veterans are enrolled in SNAP, which is the nation's largest food assistance program. [Holly Hobbs:] And I guess that raises a good point, because when I think of programs meant to address hunger, I think of USDA, which has a number of these programs--SNAP, which used to be called food stamps, being the big one right? Are they involved in helping veterans too? [Kathy Larin:] Yes. In fact, USDA leads an interagency work group with VA to help address food insecurity among veterans. And as part of that, USDA and VA have collaborated on five different initiatives to help address food insecurity among veterans. These include, for example, training of VHA staff and developing something called a Quick Start guide that provide veterans with information on nutrition assistance, including SNAP. [Holly Hobbs:] I know our work focused on the federal role, but what about states? [Kathy Larin:] USDA has encouraged states to target veterans for SNAP benefits. And some states have even called out veterans in their outreach plans to help ensure that they have access to SNAP. But USDA has not asked states to share these outreach plans with the VA. And as a result, states may be missing opportunities to collaborate at the local level with local VHA facilities to better target their outreach to veterans. {MUSIC} [Holly Hobbs:] So Kathy just told us that the VA has taken steps to address veterans’ hunger in two of its programs, as well as in partnership with USDA. But that VA and USDA don’t know how well their efforts are working and that more outreach to states is needed. So, Kathy, what could the departments do to reach more veterans and improve their programs? [Kathy Larin:] You know, in our report, we made recommendations to both VA and USDA that we believe will help address the problem of food insecurity among veterans. These include recommendations that the VA and USDA both monitor and evaluate their efforts to make sure veterans are getting the support that they need. We also recommended that VA consider providing nutrition assistance information through its Solid Start program and that USDA do more to enhance collaboration and outreach to veterans at the state and local level. [Holly Hobbs:] And last question, what's the bottom line of this report? [Kathy Larin:] Veterans have served their country through military service, but many experienced food insecurity when they return to civilian life. Both VA and USDA have taken steps to reach veterans with information and nutrition assistance. But by taking a few additional steps to monitor their own efforts and increase collaboration, they can increase the likelihood that veterans will be supported through SNAP benefits and other assistance. [Holly Hobbs:] That was Kathy Larin talking about GAO's recent review of veterans and food insecurity Thanks for your time, Kathy. [Kathy Larin:] Thank you for having me. [Holly Hobbs:] And thank you for listening to The Watchdog Report. 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