Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente is partnering with Instacart to study the effect of expanding access to food on health outcomes.
Through the study, Kaiser will provide Northern California and Southern California Medi-Cal members who have diet-related diseases with grocery stipends. The stipends can be used to purchase nutritious foods from a virtual storefront, according to an Oct. 6 Kaiser news release.
The partnership builds upon Kaiser's $50 million commitment to its food as medicine program. The news comes after Instacart partnered with New York City-based Mount Sinai Health System.
"At Kaiser Permanente, we know that without access to nutritious food, individuals are less likely to stay healthy, increasing the likelihood of new and widening health disparities and health care costs," Anand Shah, MD, vice president of social health at Kaiser Permanente, said in the news release. "This innovative study is one of the many avenues that we're pursuing to improve the health of our members and communities with diet-related diseases."