Food insecurity is a key social determinant of health, linked to increased risk for chronic illness and negative impacts on mental health.
How six payers are addressing food insecurity:
- Florida Blue is investing $3.73 million in combating food insecurity through grants to 10 community organizations, the payer said Oct. 19. The payer's philanthropic arm, Florida Blue Foundation, has provided over $16 million in grants to tackle food insecurity over the last four years.
- Massachusetts and Oregon will test medically tailored meal pilots in their Medicaid programs, HHS said.
- California awarded Molina Healthcare, Anthem Blue Cross Partnership Plan and Centene subsidiary Health Net contracts to manage the state's Medicaid programs. The contracts require the organizations to address social determinants of health, including food and housing insecurity.
- CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield is using healthcare analytics company Socially Determined's SocialScape platform to identify people facing health risks from financial strain, food insecurity and health literacy challenges.
- Centene subsidiary WellCare of North Carolina launched the Health Opportunities pilot program in May. The pilot is the nation's first comprehensive program to test nonmedical interventions, such as providing healthy food boxes and addressing transportation needs of Medicaid beneficiaries.
- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina contributed $3.2 million to a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Alliance study on food insecurity and people with hypertension.