Sign this letter below to your Congressional Representative. For more information on the Child Nutrition Act, scroll down past the form.
I am a constituent concerned about child nutrition and health and am writing to urge you to support important changes to the Child Nutrition Act.
Childhood obesity has doubled in New York over the past 25 years and now accounts for $242 million in statewide medical costs. Additionally, it is estimated that childhood hunger costs the U.S. economy $28 billion annually due to poor educational performance and long-term health costs. These are problems we can no longer afford.
President Obama has made addressing the linked problems of obesity and hunger one of his Administration's top priorities. By limiting the consumption of unhealthy foods and making sure people have access to healthy foods, we can begin to fix these problems and improve the health of our children. The Child Nutrition Act will help achieve these goals.
I strongly urge you to support President Obama’s call for $1 billion a year in funding for the Child Nutrition Act. This money will help cover a much-needed increase in reimbursements for healthy meals, make enrollment in meal programs easier for children and families, and support farm-to-school programs. Nutrition education is also extremely important, and I urge you to work with Congress to ensure that improved meals and access to healthy food doesn’t come at the expense of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Education Program.
We know that a greater investment is needed and I ask you to pass a stronger, better Child Nutrition Act.
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NYC Children Getting Short-Changed on Healthy Meals
For over 40 years, the federal Child Nutrition Act has guided the way in which New York City and other municipalities around the country address hunger and childhood nutrition. This critical piece of legislation includes five major federal programs: school lunches, school breakfast, summer meals, child and adult care food, and the women with infant children (WIC) programs. The Child Nutrition Act determines reimbursement levels, nutrition standards, and eligibility criteria for these programs.
We have much to gain, or lose, as a result of changes to this legislation. In New York City, over 27 percent of children live below the poverty line, much higher than the national rate. Additionally, since the beginning of the recession, many more New Yorkers have experienced difficulty feeding their families. To ensure our federal safety net meets the needs of vulnerable families, the Council calls on Congress to make critical changes to the Child Nutrition Act. On September 30, 2009, the New York City Council introduced a resolution itemizing these changes. We are now working with other cities around the state and country to pass similar resolutions.
The federal Child Nutrition Act (CNA) reauthorization has been extended to September 2010. Changes to this law must support healthy meals for our children and high need adults, which means ensuring that:
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reimbursement rates are high enough to purchase healthy foods;
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federal nutrition standards are a floor, not a ceiling, so that New York can continue to serve food that exceeds those standards;
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eligibility processes are fair and efficient;
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schools have support to purchase local foods; and
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certification for the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program is fair.
You can help maintain and improve children's nutrition across our city and state.
Please reach out to our federal representatives and let them know you support S.1343 "Hunger Free Schools Act" and Senator Gillibrand's "LUNCHES Act," which, if passed, will help ensure the above benefits for all New Yorkers.
How to take action:
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