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SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

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The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

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Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

More Older Adults in Kentucky Struggling with Hunger

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Tuesday, May 26, 2020   

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Kentucky has the highest rate in the nation of food insecurity among older adults, and that's likely to worsen amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new report released by the group Feeding America.

Using the most recent available data from 2018, researchers found that nearly 7% of Kentuckians over 60 and around 17% of adults age 50 to 59 were food insecure.

Stan Siegwald, director of strategic initiatives for Dare to Care Food Bank, says fixed incomes, higher health care costs, transportation issues and physical difficulty in preparing meals are all reasons many older Americans go hungry.

"All these things combine to create a stew that is not a good one when it comes to food insecurity for seniors," he states.

Siegwald adds because seniors are at higher risk for COVID-19 illness and may face additional challenges accessing food amidst closures and social distancing orders, food insecurity among older Kentuckians is likely to increase.

According to the report, more than 5 million seniors across the country aren't sure where their next meal will come from.

Siegwald says his colleagues are working to identify seniors recently experiencing food insecurity due to the coronavirus, as well as to boost home grocery deliveries, and even bring mobile markets into neighborhoods to give seniors a chance to shop for food from their front door.

"These are all ways to try to address the barriers of cost and accessibility that so many seniors face," he points out.

The federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program known as SNAP, serves as the first line of defense against hunger for people of all ages, including seniors.

But Siegwald points out participation rates among eligible older adults are much lower than the overall population.


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