Last year, Republican Governor Patrick Morrisey hosted Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in Martinsburg, W. Va., to promote Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again crusade in one of the least healthy states in the country. Then, Morrisey got to work. He collaborated with his state lawmakers to adopt the first ban on certain food dyes in school lunches, which went into effect on Aug. 1. Lawmakers also approved a statewide ban on the same dyes in all food sales to take effect in 2028. (A federal judge has put that on hold while chemical companies challenge it in court.)
Separately, West Virginia banned poor families from using food stamps to buy sodas, a move that hits about one in six houses in Morrisey’s state. In December, HHS awarded the state $199 million to improve rural healthcare.