Elevance Health included an annual grocery assistance benefit of $1,200 to $3,000 in a low-premium commercial health plan for income-eligible members with type 2 diabetes. Compared with eligible members who did not enroll, members with the grocery benefit had a 3.1 percentage-point lower rate of diabetes with complications, were more likely to take certain diabetes medications as prescribed, and did not use more healthcare services.
Poor nutrition and food insecurity are associated with higher rates of diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and other chronic conditions. While evidence supporting Food as Medicine interventions continues to grow, there remains limited evidence regarding the impact of health plan–provided grocery benefits within commercially insured populations.
To address these challenges, Elevance Health designed and launched a new low-premium health plan that included a grocery assistance benefit for income-eligible members. The initiative was intended to improve access to nutritious foods, support diabetes management, and evaluate whether integrating nutrition benefits into health insurance could improve health outcomes while maintaining affordability and responsible healthcare utilization.
Beginning January 1, 2021, Elevance Health offered eligible members access to a grocery benefit through select commercial health plans. Members meeting household income eligibility criteria could receive annual grocery assistance ranging from $1,200 to $3,000 depending on household size and could receive the benefit for as long as they were eligible.
The grocery benefit was delivered through a grocery benefits card that could be used at a broad network of participating retailers. Eligible purchases included fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, dairy products, meats, fish, breads, cereals, and cooking oils. Alcohol, tobacco products, and prepared foods were excluded.
The intervention was intentionally designed as a low-touch, scalable Food as Medicine model. Unlike medically tailored meal programs, members maintained flexibility and choice in food purchasing while receiving financial support to improve access to healthier foods.
The program was developed and implemented through collaboration between Elevance Health and Carelon Research. Researchers used administrative claims data and health plan enrollment information to evaluate outcomes among members with diabetes who enrolled in the grocery benefit plan compared with eligible members who did not enroll.
The grocery benefit provided annual support ranging from:
Participants also paid approximately $428 less in annual premiums by enrolling in the newly designed narrow-network health plan compared with alternative plans available to them.
The program leveraged existing health plan infrastructure, retailer partnerships, benefit card administration systems, claims analytics, and research support. Specific startup and operational costs were not reported.
The study included 411 members with type 2 diabetes who enrolled in the grocery benefit plan and 961 eligible members who did not enroll. The findings suggest that providing grocery assistance through a health plan can improve diabetes management and medication adherence while maintaining stable healthcare utilization.
