Impact of Grocery Store Proximity on Store Preference Among Atlanta SNAP-Ed Participants.

Objective: To assess the association between grocery store proximities and the individual's grocery store preferences among Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education participants in Atlanta.

Methods: University of Georgia Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education participants (n = 615, response rate is 36%) in 3 counties provided their preferred grocery store chains. The association between store proximity (both network distance and driving time) and store preference was measured through logistic regression controlling for age, sex, and race.

Racial disparities for COVID19 mortality in Georgia: Spatial analysis by age based on excess deaths.

Introduction: This study uses multiple measures of excess deaths to analyze racial disparities in COVID-19 mortality across Georgia.

Methods: The Georgia Department of Public Health provided monthly mortality data for 2010-2020 stratified by race/ethnicity, age, county, and recorded cause of death. We first calculate crude mortality rates by health district during the time period for all groups for March through June for our historical period to identify significant time-series outliers in 2020 distinguishable from general trend variations.

Practicing community geography in times of crisis.

Community geography emphasizes the centrality of community engagement to socially transformative research. This introduction to a special issue of on community geography outlines how this growing subfield provides a model for collaborative action with the crises of our time, from white supremacy through climate change. As the co-editors of this special issue, we summarize the contents of these 14 articles, grouping them by the shared themes of power, institutional partnerships, pedagogy, and methods.

Regional differences in exertional heat illness rates among Georgia USA high school football players.

Many high school associations in recent years are developing policies to improve player safety regarding exertional heat illnesses (EHIs). A question is whether states with diverse climates need multiple sets of guidelines with different activity modification thresholds. We examine this question in the state of Georgia, which has a diverse climate.

The mobility of food retailers: How proximity to SNAP authorized food retailers changed in Atlanta during the Great Recession.

Retailer mobility, defined as the shifting geographic patterns of retail locations over time, is a significant but understudied factor shaping neighborhood food environments. Our research addresses this gap by analyzing changes in proximity to SNAP authorized chain retailers in the Atlanta urban area using yearly data from 2008 to 2013. We identify six demographically similar geographic clusters of census tracts in our study area based on race and economic variables.

Geographic Disparities in Availability of Opioid Use Disorder Treatment for Medicaid Enrollees.

Objective: To examine county-level geographic variation in treatment admissions among opioid treatment programs (OTPs) that accept Medicaid in the continental United States.

Data Sources/study Setting: Data come from the 2012 National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services.

Study Design/data Collection: We used local measures of spatial autocorrelation (LISA) analysis to identify (1) clusters of counties with higher and lower than average rates of opioid use disorders and (2) clusters of counties with higher and lower than average treatment admissions among OTPs that accept Medicaid, adjusting for county population size.

Growth In SNAP Retailers Was Associated With Increased Client Enrollment In Georgia During The Great Recession.

Policies to improve food accessibility in underserved areas often use direct financial incentives to attract new food retailers. Our analysis of data on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Georgia before and after the Great Recession suggests that increased program enrollment improves access to food for SNAP beneficiaries by acting as an indirect subsidy to retailers. We divided food stores into four categories: large, midsize, small, and specialty retailers.

Characteristics of Older Georgians Receiving Older Americans Act Nutrition Program Services and Other Home- and Community-Based Services: Findings from the Georgia Aging Information Management System (GA AIMS).

This descriptive study examined characteristics of older Georgians receiving Older Americans Act Nutrition Program Services and other home- and community-based services (HCBS) using state aging administrative data (N = 31,341, mean age: 76.6 ± 9.2 y, 71.

When are food deserts? Integrating time into research on food accessibility.

The food desert concept is used as a means for defining regions as having inadequate spatial and socioeconomic access to vendors selling nutritious foods. This primarily aggregate-level and static method for understanding the food environment is commonly used by researchers and policy makers seeking to improve health outcomes of those affected by reduced access. However, recent research findings have brought the association between living in a food desert and adverse health outcomes into question.

What does SNAP benefit usage tell us about food access in low-income neighborhoods?

Current GIS based research on food access has focused primarily on the proximity of food sources to places of residence in low-income communities, with relatively little attention given to actual practices of food procurement. This project addresses this issue by using dasymetric mapping techniques to develop fine scale estimates of benefit usage for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, drawing from existing zip code level data on benefit distribution and redemptions.