Food is Medicine

Food is Medicine (FIM) interventions are tailored to respond to the connection between food and health by helping to prevent and treat diet-related disease. They are made up of two components: the provision of food that supports health or food assistance and a nexus to the health care system. Examples include medically tailored meals (MTM), medically tailored groceries, and produce prescriptions.

Resources and Information

American College of Lifestyle Medicine: Food as Medicine Training for Clinicians
American Heart Association: Food Is Medicine: A Presidential Advisory From the American Heart Association
American Society for Nutrition: Food as Medicine research
Aspen Institute: Food is Medicine Research Action Plan
The BMJ: Food is medicine: actions to integrate food and nutrition into healthcare
Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation (CHLPI) - Food is Medicine resources
Food is Medicine Coalition: Policy and research resources
Health Affairs Scholar: The evolution and scope of Medicaid Section 1115 demonstrations to address nutrition: a US survey
Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion: Food is Medicine: A Project to Unify and Advance Collective Action
US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): HHS Hosts First-Ever ‘Food is Medicine’ Summit, Launches Three Public-Private Partnerships

Medically Tailored Home-Delivered Meals Demonstration Pilot Act

H.R. 6780 - Representative Jim McGovern (D-MA)

Introduced on 12/13/23
32 Co-Sponsors as of 3/18/24

S.2133 - Senator Debbie Stabenow [D-MI]

Introduced on 6/22/23
3 Co-Sponsors as of 3/18/24

Description

This bill would:

Establish a three-year Medicare pilot program to assess the effects of a covered hospital providing medically tailored home-delivered meals (MTM) to qualified individuals. Covered hospitals would provide at least two home-delivered meals per day to qualified individuals, as well as any dependents under the age of 18 who reside in their household for at least 12 weeks.

Status

The bills were referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance.

Additional Information

Representative McGovern’s office: McGovern, Malliotakis, Pingree, Evans and Fitzpatrick Introduce Legislation to Create a Medically Tailored Meals Demonstration Program in Medicare
Senator Stabenow's office: Senators Stabenow, Marshall, Booker, and Cassidy Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Improve the Health of Seniors
Ceres Community Project: MTM bill support letter
Community Servings: A Pivotal Moment for Medically Tailored Meal Policy
Food is Medicine Coalition (FIMC): Food Is Medicine Coalition Supports The Bipartisan Medically Tailored Home-Delivered Meal Demonstration Pilot Act
FIMC: MTM bill policy background and sign-on letter
Open Hand Atlanta: Advocating for Medically Tailored Meals on The Hill

Contact

For further information about this issue or other legislation in the ELM, please contact Hannah Miller at hmiller@rootcausecoalition.org