The request was filed as part of Gov. Kevin Stitt’s ‘Make Oklahoma Healthy Again ’campaign.
Oklahoma has become the latest state to request federal permission to exclude soft drinks and candy from the list of items that can be purchased through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps, Gov. Kevin Stitt announced on June 26.
Stitt made the announcement during an event at the state Capitol, alongside Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as part of his “Make Oklahoma Healthy Again” (MOHA) campaign.
According to Stitt’s office, the campaign is a state-level extension of the national Make America Healthy Again movement championed by President Donald Trump and Kennedy.
“For far too long, we have settled for food that has made us sicker as a nation,” said Stitt. “In Oklahoma, we’re choosing common sense, medical freedom, and personal responsibility.”
Stitt said Oklahoma formally submitted the federal waiver to the Department of Agriculture amid growing bipartisan concern about the link between processed food consumption and chronic illnesses.
The move means Oklahoma joins a growing list of states seeking to remove the sugary items from the federal program that helps more than 42 million low-income Americans pay for food each month.
The governors of Arkansas and Indiana each submitted waivers on April 15, citing efforts to reduce chronic disease and ensure taxpayer funds in federal food assistance programs are used to help low-income Americans afford nutritious food.
Iowa and Nebraska have also submitted similar requests, while West Virginia and Utah have begun the process of pursuing similar changes to their SNAP program.
