On May 20, 2025, the Food is Medicine Institute and Food Tank hosted a Capitol Hill Luncheon titled “Improving Health While Managing Healthcare Spending: Enter Food is Medicine.” The event took place in-person in the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center and was also live-streamed. Special thanks to Member of Congress Nicole Malliotakis for providing the room for the luncheon.
The luncheon brought together medical professionals, Food is Medicine (FIM) thought leaders, policymakers, and more for dynamic conversations around integrating nutrition into healthcare. The event space in the Visitor Center was high-energy and filled to capacity, including all of the standing room, while more than 2,000 people watched the event live online.
Examples of key takeaways from the briefing include:
- Poor nutrition is a driver of diet-related diseases and has staggering costs to society, yet most Americans have dietary patterns that do not align with recommendations for good health. FIM interventions can play an important role in addressing both the chronic disease epidemic and the rapidly escalating rise in healthcare costs.
- FIM has received bipartisan support in Congress. Members on both sides of the aisle recognize the health, economic, and national security challenges posed by poor U.S. dietary intakes and are eager to explore solutions that can improve health while managing healthcare spending.
- Federal agencies have used innovative avenues to implement FIM interventions, such as initiatives in the VA and through Medicaid section 1115 waivers, and continued support for and expansion of Food is Medicine research and intervention implementation is needed to provide FIM access to more people who would be eligible for these services.
Watch: Improving Health While Managing Healthcare Spending: Enter Food is Medicine
Congressional Remarks were provided by:
- U.S. Member of Congress Buddy Carter
- U.S. Member of Congress Greg Murphy, MD
- U.S. Member of Congress Robin Kelly
- U.S. Member of Congress Vern Buchanan
- U.S. Member of Congress Chellie Pingree
Panelists included:
Panel 1: Federal Innovations in Food is Medicine
- Herman Johnson, U.S. Army Veteran and Food is Medicine Program Participant
- Erika Hanson, Clinical Instructor, Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation, Harvard Law School
- Dana Thomas, Managing Director, Food is Medicine, The Rockefeller Foundation
- Dariush Mozaffarian, Director, Food is Medicine Institute
- Moderated by Danielle Nierenberg, President, Food Tank
Panel 2: Food is Medicine for the Public
- Laura Carroll, Senior Advisor for Nutrition Outreach, FDA Human Foods Program
- Crystal McGaffee, Community Chief Nursing Officer and Food is Medicine Program Participant, Paintsville Appalachian Regional Healthcare Hospital
- Erin Martin, Founder, FreshRx Oklahoma
- Evan Sarris, Deputy Director, Government Relations, Kroger Health
- Moderated by Danielle Nierenberg, President, Food Tank
Panel 3: Food is Medicine: On the Frontlines of Implementation
- Pam Schwartz, Executive Director, Community Health, Kaiser Permanente
- Dr. Kofi Essel, Food as Medicine Program Director, Elevance Health
- Dion Dawson, Founder and Chief Dreamer, Dion’s Chicago Dream
- Hollie Harris, President and CEO, Appalachian Regional Healthcare
- Moderated by Dariush Mozaffarian, Director, Food is Medicine Institute
