HHS announces participants in hospital food pledge

The Department of Health and Human Services Aug. 14 announced that three health systems have signed the agency’s voluntary pledge related to hospital efforts on healthy food. HHS noted that those systems — Corewell Health in Michigan, Houston Methodist in Texas and Sanford Health in South Dakota — are represented by the past, current and incoming chair of the AHA.

Among other items, the “Make Hospital Food Healthier Pledge" asks hospitals to align patient food services with the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans; work to ensure inpatient meals meet individual nutritional needs and support healing, recovery and long-term health; and provide accessible nutrition resources and education as part of discharge planning to help patients sustain healthy habits. The pledge was launched in April.

“The AHA supports the Administration’s continued focus on meeting patients’ nutritional needs that promotes healing, recovery and patient health,” said AHA President and CEO Rick Pollack. “Hospitals across the country work closely with registered dieticians and clinical staff to provide patients with high quality, nutritious meals that embrace the notion that ‘food is medicine.’ We are committed to helping hospitals — as clinically appropriate and feasible — ensure that patients have access to nourishing meals, including by sharing this voluntary pledge with the hospital field and encouraging them to review it and give it serious consideration.”