MAHA Spreads Its Wings Across America

By Adam Garrie, Breaking News Reporter, The Kennedy Beacon

On March 28, Utah became the first state to ban fluoride from drinking water after Governor Spencer Cox (R) signed legislation to remove the potentially damaging substance from the state’s water supply.

Utah’s new law is just one of dozens of Make America Healthy Again (MAHA)-inspired, transformative health bills that are quietly making their way through court rooms across the country.

In Utah, the move comes after HHS Secretary Kennedy said that removing fluoride from water is one of his administration’s top priorities. Studies show that fluoride can have dangerous neurotoxic effects that are particularly pronounced in babies, children and expecting mothers.

One day earlier, Iowa’s state House of Representatives passed a bill to restrict using subsidies from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), a food stamp program aimed at helping unemployed and low-income Americans. The bill forbids SNAP recipients from using their government aid to purchase ultra-processed ‘junk food.’

The Iowa bill, which passed with a 56-40 vote, mirrors proposals reportedly in the works at a federal level.

But passing the bill in Iowa was not smooth sailing. The American Beverage Association (ABA), among other groups, have been lobbying against any SNAP restrictions.

More Dyes Banned

West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey signed legislation banning seven toxic food dyes from food served in the state's schools. Beginning in 2026, these dyes will be banned on all food sold in the state.

According to media reports, over half of the nation’s states are considering similar bans.

Prior to the current administration, it was difficult for states to take steps to provide healthier food options to K-12 students. One reason: the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), a federally funded meal program that provides low-cost lunches to students in public and nonprofit schools, administered by the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), has strict grounds for school eligibility.

In order to receive federal meal subsidies on a per-student basis, states and local school districts cannot deviate from the NSLP’s nutritional guidelines, unless a waiver is granted by federal agencies.

This is the case, even when states and school districts offer higher quality nutritional standards built around fresh, locally sourced ingredients.

However, both the HHS and USDA Secretaries have indicated an eagerness to grant waivers to states and school districts that are pursuing initiatives to provide better nutrition to students. This marks a major departure from the approach of the previous administration.

Speaking with Governor Morrisey, Secretary Kennedy confirmed that West Virginia will receive a federal waiver to provide healthier food in K-12 schools. Kennedy also said that the federal government will give the state a waiver that allows it to restrict SNAP dollars going to junk food purchases.

Earlier in March, the Texas State Senate unanimously passed Senator Lois Kolkhorst's SB 25. The bill requires labels on all food sold in Texas to list all ingredients that are legal in the U.S. but banned in Canada and the EU. The deadline for the new labeling will take effect in 2027.

The bill also mandates 30 minutes of physical education in all Texas schools in addition to special courses on nutritional education. Finally, the bill calls for nutrition education for Texas physicians and medical students, to enhance their understanding of diet-related health issues.

The Texas Senate also recently passed SB 314, which restricts over a dozen ingredients in the ultra-processed foods served to students at Texas schools.

MAHA’s chief aim is to make America Healthy again while rolling back the nation’s chronic disease epidemic. What has started as a federal push, encouraged by President Trump and HHS Secretary Kennedy, is now sweeping the country, one state at a time.