United States: New studies demonstrate that home-delivered nutritionally specific meals designed for persons with diabetes or heart disease or cancer lead to decreased hospital stays and lead to superior healthcare results. The “Food Is Medicine” program delivers health-specific meals to patients that both decrease medical expenses substantially while improving health results, as reported by HealthDay.
Millions Stand to Benefit Nationwide
A Health Affairs paper from April 2019 shows that medically tailored meals availability extends to 1.2 million Californians and 18,000 Alaskans. Twenty-five percent of all eligible Americans amount to fourteen million people who can benefit from these programs nationwide. Medical meal programs have the potential to generate $32 billion in health savings for the healthcare system in their first year of operation.
Proven Cost Savings and Health Benefits
According to the study, medically tailored meals could prevent over 3.5 million hospitalizations linked to chronic diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular issues, and cancer annually. The findings demonstrate that tailored meals were cost-saving in 49 of the 50 states, underscoring their potential to reduce both financial and health burdens.
State-Specific Insights and Financial Impact
In some states, the per-patient savings were particularly striking. Connecticut saw savings of $6,299 per patient, while Massachusetts and Pennsylvania experienced savings of $4,331 and $4,450, respectively. Despite some states not seeing immediate financial savings, the health benefits were still significant, particularly in states like Alabama, as reported by HealthDay.
Broadening Support and Future Outlook
Medically tailored meals are gaining momentum, with widespread support from policy-makers. Around 90% of participants in the study were covered by Medicare or Medicaid, and 16 states have already submitted Food Is Medicine waiver proposals to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). According to Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, the research demonstrates that “medically tailored meals are not just good medicine—they’re good economics.”