Doctors Can Now Prescribe Free Fruits & Vegetables With New Debit Card

An apple a day keeps the doctor away, goes the famous saying. But what happens when someone can’t afford to have their fridge stocked up with produce?
 
Doctors in Boston can now prescribe patients suffering from eating disorders or illnesses such as diabetes with a debit card that can get them free fruits and vegetables. The card, called ‘Fresh Connect’, can be used at designated stores in Massachusetts to offset payment for produce.
 
The team behind such a venture is About Fresh, which first started as a grassroots organization that handed out food in Boston. However, the company wanted to scale up access to healthy produce as food stamps were not working well enough in helping people afford the right types of groceries.

Instead of relying on coupons, patients can swipe the card at checkout, and Fresh Connect can immediately scan for fruits and vegetables to cover the cost. After which, the customers can pay for the remainder of the bill. The amount available for subsidies depends on each provider, but it is usually around US$100 a month.

Users can utilize the card in places such as Shop & Shop in Boston, farmer’s markets, restaurants, and online grocery shopping.
 

A study is being conducted to analyze how changes in shopping habits can affect health through data collected from the debit cards via the HIPAA-compliant platform supporting the program. It aims to make sure that the program is actually working towards changing mindsets and helping patients recover.

Funding for the program mainly comes from Medicaid in Massachusetts, and the Community Care Cooperative (C3) that works with healthcare centers piloted the card last year to aid those in need. Fresh Connect has also recently launched in Washington, DC, where most of its funding comes from philanthropic means.
 
However, due to a change in funding for Medicaid, patients will only be able to use the card for six months. Despite this, that time will be long enough for people to develop a healthy diet and outlook on food.

A good relationship with food could be just as crucial as medical treatments, while being more cost-effective to boot. What we eat is the basis for our well-being, and although medicine is still critical, cultivating a healthy diet can benefit us more in the long run. A study by Tufts University dives deeper into this notion.
 
Per Fast Company, About Fresh founder Josh Trautwein hopes Fresh Connect can be found one day across all 50 states.
 
 
 
[via Fast Company and About Fresh, images via About Fresh]