Guaranteed income programs may reduce food insecurity and improve nutrition among low-income Black households in the state of Georgia, according to a new study led by the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.
The study evaluated the “In Her Hands” pilot program, launched in 2022, which provided $20,400 each over two years to 654 randomly selected low-income women in three majority-Black Georgia communities. Participants reported higher household food security and better diet quality than women who did not receive the payments.
Stephen Roll, an assistant professor and research director at the Brown School’s Center for Social Development and the study’s lead author, said 40% of the women in the program reported high or marginal food security, compared with 14% of women in the comparison group. The findings were published Feb. 2 in Health Affairs. Co-authors include Laura Brugger, a research assistant professor at the Brown School.
“Poverty is a major driver of food and nutrition insecurity — and, in turn, health disparities,” Roll said. “We find that guaranteed income meaningfully improves people’s ability to afford enough nutritious food, suggesting that reducing economic inequality can be a powerful lever for reducing health inequities.”
Researchers analyzed two years of survey data and observed improvements in household food security, nutrition security and perceived control over diet among participants. They noted that benefits grew over the second year of the program, suggesting the positive effects of guaranteed income increase over time.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), food insecurity disproportionately affects Black and Hispanic households, low-income families and single-parent households, particularly in the South. In 2023, the USDA reported that about 13.5% of U.S. households were food insecure. Inadequate nutrition is linked to chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke and Type 2 diabetes.
“These results fit with a growing body of evidence that regular cash transfers improve food security, which increases our confidence that the core finding is replicable beyond Georgia,” Roll said. “The size of the effect may vary across states and populations, but the mechanism is widely relevant: when economically marginalized households receive steady cash support, they can afford food more consistently and make choices that better match their health needs and preferences.”
While federal programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the National School Lunch Program aim to alleviate food insecurity, structural barriers such as work-reporting requirements can limit participation, particularly for Black families. Guaranteed income programs offer a more direct approach, providing regular, unconditional cash transfers that allow households to make choices about food, housing and other basic needs.
“One important finding from this work is that the effects of guaranteed income on food and nutrition security increased over time,” Roll said. “This demonstrates the importance of sustained cash support for economically marginalized families, rather than just focusing on one-time or time-limited relief efforts.”
Guaranteed income programs have gained attention in recent years as a tool to address economic and racial disparities. Early U.S. pilots, including the Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration in California and the Magnolia Mother’s Trust in Mississippi, have reported improvements in participants’ mental health, financial security and access to food.
