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Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity leads research and consulting initiatives that identify and address barriers to economic well-being.
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USDA Report Shows Nearly 50 Million Americans Facing Hunger
“The latest Household Food Security report released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service (ERS) reveals that 47.9 million people lived in food-insecure households last year. These findings highlight a crisis that is set to deepen as

For Those Who Help The Poor, 2025 Goes Down As A Year Of Chaos
LOGAN, Ohio – Before dawn, in a cold, blustery drizzle, a line forms outside a small, squat building on an open stretch of road on the outskirts of town. “My heater quit working in my car,” Scott Skinner says good-naturedly to the next man in line. “Man, what kinda luck am I having.” The building is called “The Market” because it has a food pantry, but Skinner and the others are here to sign up for heating assistance. He’s been calling for a month to get an appointment with no luck, so he showed up an hour ago to snag […]

Medicaid Plans Step Up Outreach Efforts Ahead of Coming Changes

Kids' Share: Analyzing Federal Expenditures on Children
A new Urban Institute series looks comprehensively at trends in federal and state spending and tax expenditures on children—the kids’ share of public spending. Children can’t vote and they can’t lobby for public resources, but their well-being and development affect...

State Senate Group Vets Ideas For Improving Health of Women and Children in MS
“Advocates and state agency directors pitched recommendations to Mississippi lawmakers Tuesday on how to prioritize legislative funds for the health and well-being of women, children and families during the upcoming legislative session.

Billions in Rural Health Care Funding Hinge on States Passing Trump-Backed Policies
“The Trump administration offered states a deal: pledge to enact White House-favored policies for a chance to win a bigger share of the $50 billion aimed at transforming the nation’s struggling rural health care systems.

Can Opportunity Zones Ever Meet Their Poverty-Fighting Promise?
“Douglas MacArthur famously told us that “old soldiers never die, they just fade away.” When it comes to urban reform schemes, that adage is about half right. They don’t die, but they don’t fade away either. They just change their names.

Americans Are Buckling Under Medical Bills And It Could Get Worse
“Charities that help people cover their medical bills say they’re seeing an alarming increase in requests for help.

When Medicaid Cuts Hit, Urban Hospitals Could Be Hit Hardest

When The Employed Are Pushed Into Homelessness
“In Atlanta, journalist Brian Goldstone introduces us to the intersection of Memorial Drive and Candler Road – the threshold of two neighborhoods. On one side: a liberal arts college and cafés. “And you cross over, and it’s dialysis centers, it’s liquor stores, it’s payday lenders,” he said. “Other areas of Atlanta are booming, but this area sort of stayed stuck in this period of decline. … The poor are out here on these peripheral areas.”

Reps. Meng, Maloy Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Curb Period Poverty

Poverty Spikes in The Land of The Tech Billionaires
“SAN FRANCISCO — It takes Tazo Stuart-Riascos 28,000 steps per day to make ends meet in one of America’s most unaffordable places.

