Fast Food for Food Stamps

The state of Illinois is set to pass a bill that will allow Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients to use their food stamps to purchase fast food.

If passed, House Bill 3343 would establish a Restaurant Meals Program so a select few SNAP users can purchase restaurant meals.

The Restaurant Meals Program is limited to the elderly, disabled, homeless people and their spouses.

State Representative Tom Demmer fully supports the bill, stating, “Somebody who’s homeless, for example, they don’t have a place to prepare that food or somebody who’s disabled, they’re not able to come home and cook a meal themselves.”

Illinois is not the first to push for a program like this. California and Arizona already have a similar program which allows SNAP recipients to purchase meals from Subway or Jack-in-the-Box.