In Case You Missed It...

This week on Off the Charts, we focused on nutrition programs, health care, state budgets and taxes, and income inequality.

• On nutrition programs, Zoë Neuberger explained why nutrition experts, not lobbyists, should decide which foods the WIC program provides; countered the potato industry’s misleading claims regarding farmers’ markets; and pointed to editorials supporting a science-based approached to the WIC foods issue.  Neuberger also highlighted our paper on the new “community eligibility” option, which can eliminate hunger in more than 25,000 schools.  Becca Segal rounded up statements by school officials on why they are adopting community eligibility.
• On health care, Edwin Park explained why the health plan from a group of Senate Republicans would cause millions to lose coverage or block them from gaining it.  Shelby Gonzales outlined the important role that mothers play in getting coverage for their families.
• On state budgets and taxes, Chris Mai pointed to updated projections that show Kansas’ large tax cuts aren’t paying off.  Michael Mazerov rebutted the American Legislative Exchange Council’s critique of our recent paper on interstate migration.
• On income inequality, Chye-Ching Huang explained that a 2008 Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) report doesn’t show that the United States does a lot to address income inequality.

In other news, we issued papers on why some of the proposed Medicare Part D regulations dropped by the Obama Administration were sound, why the Senate Republican health plan would likely result in more uninsured and fewer consumer protections, what OECD data really show about U.S. taxes and reducing inequality, and how community eligibility can help more than 25,000 schools become hunger free. Chart of the Week:

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A variety of news outlets featured CBPP’s work and experts recently.  Here are some highlights: If U.S. taxes are so progressive, why the inequality gap? CBS News May 13, 2014 The Right Time to Worry About the National Debt US News and World Report May 16, 2014