Policy Watch: State-Funded Healthy Food Incentives Cut By Forty Percent

Food benefits for thousands of households, including over 21,000 in MetroWest, will be curtailed starting on December 1. Households that previously received up to $80 in additional funding to buy healthy food each month will now be limited to a $20 incentive.

The Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) is a state-funded program that supports both Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) users and farm vendors. When a SNAP participant uses their electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card to purchase healthy, local produce from participating vendors, they can get money put back on their card, further stretching their grocery budget each month. 

Governor Healey’s budget request to fully fund HIP for FY 2025 was reduced by 40%, leaving the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) and the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) to limit the benefit to keep the program funded year-round.

Social service agencies should work with clients to communicate the changes. Importantly, clients who utilize a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program need to make changes before November 20 of this year. DTA offers a flyer on their website in fifteen languages to help communicate this information.