US Preventive Services Task Force recommendations for screening for food insecurity: Silver linings amid a cloudy future

In a country as wealthy as the US, it is unfathomable and heartbreaking that so many continue to be food insecure (that is, they do not have access to sufficient food, or food of an adequate quality, to meet their basic needs). Recent data from 2023 demonstrate that 13.5% of US households experience food insecurity. Food insecurity is a direct result of economic instability and highly correlated with poverty. Due to the persistent effects of structural racism, minoritized groups, including American Indian/Alaska Native, Black, and Hispanic individuals, are more than twice as likely to have food insecurity than White populations. Those most vulnerable and marginalized, including children, older adults, individuals who identify as LGBTQ+, veterans, and adults with disabilities, are also at higher risk. Clearly, food insecurity does not affect everyone equally in US society.