Washington state has ended its COVID-19 state of emergency, and that's having effects on the public benefits people were relying on to get through the pandemic.

The state of emergency came to a halt at the end of October. The declaration had lifted some of the more onerous restrictions for benefits.

Christina Wong, director of public policy and advocacy with Northwest Harvest, said temporary expansions of relief also were connected to the health emergency.

"People might have fewer resources to help pay for essentials," said Wong. "That will then mean they'll be considering skipping meals in order to make savings to continue paying for those other really important needs."

Wong said people still are in a precarious position, struggling with higher prices at the grocery store and other costs of living such as rent and transportation.

She noted that people will rely more on food banks, but that pantries are feeling a squeeze from higher prices as well.

Marcy Bowers is the executive director of the Statewide Poverty Action Network, based in Seattle.

She said some of the waivers in place - such as suspending reviews for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled and Housing and Essential Needs referral programs - provided more flexibility and time for the people who rely on these programs.

She added that it also boosted confidence in the system.

"Many people told me that they felt like the state systems trusted them for the first time in a long time," said Bowers, "that they didn't have to continuously prove how much they needed something."

The emergency food allotments that boosted the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - or SNAP - also were tied to states' emergency declarations, leaving the future of these additional benefits uncertain.

Wong said fortunately, there could be a way to fix that.

"The good news," said Wong, "is that there are lots of examples out there about how other states who have ended their state public-health emergency declaration have still been able to get approval to provide emergency SNAP allotments by connecting it to the federal emergency health declaration."

However, Wong noted that the federal emergency declaration is set to expire in February.

Bowers said the additional benefits provided during the pandemic have helped many people who were struggling.

She said she's concerned that ending those resources abruptly could be like pulling the rug out from under them and leave them worse off than before the pandemic.

Bowers said there are positive lessons to be learned from the response to this public health emergency.

"Many of the things that we did better during the pandemic were a result of waivers and, sort of, a suspension of the rules," said Bowers. "But we do have the ability via public policymaking to change those rules so that we can better serve people."

San Diego may seem like a wealthy area, but the mountain communities in the eastern part of the county still struggle with hunger and poverty.

Now, a new $100,000 grant from Save the Children's Innovation Lab will fund the development of a program to mailboxes of shelf-stable food to low-income rural families, starting next year.

Anahid Brakke, president and CEO of the San Diego Hunger Coalition, said the program has been a big hit in other communities.

"The parents said, 'It's like Christmas.' The kids feel like it's Christmas, you know, they get this food box; you know, it's for them," Brakke explained. "It really helps supplement the whole household."

A team from the San Diego Hunger Coalition is at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, this week to learn best practices from other communities. The funds will also be used to train community health navigators who can help people sign up for programs like CalFresh and WIC.

Esther Liew with Save the Children says food boxes that arrive by mail provide rural communities greater access to nutritious food.

"There's little public transportation in rural communities, meaning that they then have limited access to grocery stores and places where they can get fresh and nutritious foods," Liew pointed out. "That makes it really difficult to provide the food that they need for their children and their family members."

Hunger Coalition data showed about 35% of children in the Mountain Empire region live in poverty, which is nearly triple the rate for the rest of San Diego County.

In a recent community food survey of local residents, almost three-quarters said they would run out of food at some point in the last 30 days and did not have the resources to buy more.

One North Carolina Housing Authority in Robeson County has plans to launch a mobile "pay-what-you-can" food bus loaded with fresh fruits, vegetables and other foods that will serve families lacking transportation. The pilot program is one of a handful across the country to receive a $100,000 dollar grant from Save the Children's Rural Child Hunger Research and Innovation Lab to tackle rural hunger.

Colton Allen Oxendine, resident services director with the City of Lumberton's Housing Authority, said many residents have to walk miles to the nearest grocery store because they have no transportation.

"So this bus is going to reach well over 3,000 to 5,000 people," he said. "The goal is to make this a success."

He said residents will be able to use debit, credit, food stamps and whatever cash they have on hand at the mobile bus, and added he expects the program to be up and running by August. According to data from UNC-Chapel Hill, more then 30% of kids living in Robeson County live in food-insecure homes.

Allen Oxendine said many housing authority residents persist largely on processed, unhealthy foods.

"A lot of them resort to the smaller stores like gas stations, Family Dollar, Dollar General. We all know they do not carry fresh fruit and vegetables," he said.

Esther Liew, Lead Associate for Food Security Projects with Save the Children, said solutions to stop child hunger must come from within rural communities.

"What we're hoping is that they will be able to develop ways of working that maybe look a little bit different from how these similar types of programs would work in urban settings, so that we can help them to develop solutions that are specifically for rural contexts," Liew said.

A recent survey by Save the Children and the Child Action Network found 77% of rural parents report being worried they might not be able to afford enough food to feed their family.

Mountaineer Food Bank is partnering with DoorDash to home-deliver groceries to Mercer County's neediest families. The pilot program is one of a handful across the country to receive a $100,000 dollar grant from Save the Children's Rural Child Hunger Research and Innovation Lab to tackle rural hunger.

One in six West Virginia kids struggles with an empty stomach every day, according to Feeding America.

Gabriela Schoolcraft, communications coordinator for Mountaineer Food Bank, explained most families in the state's rural counties do not have a vehicle or are limited by fuel costs. She added the program, which begins this year, will initially serve 200 families.

"We'll get the foods in Mercer County and DoorDash will meet us at a pickup location," Schoolcraft said. "And we'll deliver the food to families that need it within the county. "

Schoolcraft said the food bank worked with the Mercer County Board of Education to determine which families would benefit the most. She added DoorDash drivers will be paid for their deliveries, and called it a win-win to increase job security in the region while helping families.

Schoolcraft said the food boxes will be tailored to individuals' household circumstances, noting that many families lack the resources to cook meals from scratch.

"For example, some families only have a microwave," she said. "So if that's the case, we'll only provide foods that are microwave centered, but they'll also receive fresh produce and proteins and dairies."

Esther Liew, the Lead Associate for Food Security Projects with Save the Children, said solutions to stop child hunger must come from within rural communities.

"What we're hoping is that they will be able to develop ways of working that maybe look a little bit different from how these similar types of programs would work in urban settings, Liew said. "So that we can help them to develop solutions that are specifically for rural contexts."

A recent survey by Save the Children and the Child Action Network found 77% of rural parents say they are worried they might not be able to afford enough food to feed their family.