Food Matters: How Middlesex Health is Addressing Food Insecurity

Food insecurity is a problem throughout the United States, including in Connecticut. So much so that it is considered a social determinant of health. Having limited or uncertain access to nutritionally adequate and safe foods makes it hard for people to live their best life. For children, a lack of nutritious food can negatively impact child development. 

While it will take more than Middlesex Health to help alleviate food insecurity, the health system is taking steps to address the problem through a program called Prescription for Healthy Eating. 

Many individuals in Middletown and Middlesex County, including children and older adults, experience food insecurity. In some cases, they may not know where their next meal will come from. How does this happen?

There are several barriers that can prevent individuals from acquiring nutritious food, including income level and the ability to access grocery stores that supply affordable, fresh produce. This is where Middlesex can help. The Prescription for Healthy Eating program increases access to fresh fruits and vegetables by providing coupons to the Middletown Farmers Market to eligible patients and their families. 

The program started in 2015 as a collaboration between the Middlesex Health Family Medicine Residency Program and the health system’s Community Benefit Department, and it has expanded since. The Middlesex Health Center for Chronic Care Management and The Beit Paley Center, which offers mental health services, are also now involved. 

During visits with patients, medical providers who participate in the Prescription for Healthy Eating program screen them for food insecurity by asking them if they worry about running out of food before being able to purchase more. Patients are also asked if the food they purchase doesn’t last until they can buy more. If a patient indicates that they believe these statements apply to them, a provider will note that the patient experiences food insecurity and will issue the patient two $5 coupons that can be redeemed at the Middletown Farmers Market, which runs from June through October each year. 

If the patient has a family, the amount received is adjusted accordingly. The patient will receive an additional coupon for each person in their household. 

Both the screening questions and the farmers market coupons are available in both English and Spanish to ensure that language is not a barrier that prevents patients from benefiting from the program.

Prescription for Healthy Eating is funded by Middlesex Health’s Helping Hands Assistance Fund, which has provided more than $14,800 in support of the program. That money has helped more than 700 people.

As an added bonus: In addition to increasing access to nutritious fruits and vegetables, the Prescription for Healthy Eating program also supports local farmers. The produce at the Middletown Farmers Market is grown locally!