$4 Million Investment Addresses Chronic Conditions, Lowers Health Care Costs

DURHAM, NC - The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation (Blue Cross NC Foundation) is investing $4 million in organizations across the state to improve access to healthy food, an approach proven to lower health care costs and strengthen health outcomes. The investment helps nine community-based organizations advance Food Is Medicine solutions across North Carolina. Data released last week highlights how efforts like these deliver meaningful savings and improve health.

The multi-year grants will support partnerships among community organizations, health care providers and local farmers to help North Carolinians better manage conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and hypertension. Together, these organizations will implement and expand practical, locally driven solutions that connect people to nutritious food as part of their care.

"Access to healthy food is foundational to good health," said Colleen Briggs, President of the Blue Cross NC Foundation and Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility at Blue Cross NC. "By investing in community-led Food Is Medicine programs, we're supporting proven strategies that help people manage chronic conditions, strengthen local food systems, and lower health care costs."

Statewide partnerships with local solutions

Each organization brings a tailored approach, ranging from produce prescriptions and medically tailored groceries to prepared meals, mobile food markets, and nutrition education. Collectively, the grantees serve rural and urban areas across North Carolina and work closely with health systems, federally qualified health centers, and clinics to integrate food into care delivery.

The nine organizations receiving grants are:

• Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project (ASAP) - Buncombe County
• Green Rural Redevelopment Organization - Vance County
• Conetoe Family Life Center, Inc. - Edgecombe County
• TRACTOR Food & Farms - Mitchell County
• Hunger and Health Coalition - Watauga County
• Reinvestment Partners - Durham County
• Nourish Up - Mecklenburg County
• R.A.M.S Kitchen/Kintegra Health - Gaston County
• Feast Down East, Inc. - Pender County

"In rural communities like Conetoe, chronic illnesses are often made worse by lack of access to healthy food, preventive care, and trusted local support," said Reverend Richard Joyner, strategic farm advisor at Conetoe Family Life Center. "This investment allows us connect families to nutritious food and practical resources that help manage chronic conditions and improve long-term health outcomes - and it works!"

Advancing Health Beyond the Doctor's Office

This investment builds on Blue Cross NC's broader Health Through Food strategy, which recognizes food as a powerful tool to improve health, prevent disease, and address rising health care costs. Grantees will track outcomes over time, including reductions in diet-related chronic disease risk, gains in community-level health indicators, and progress toward longer-term goals such as lower health care utilization and improved affordability.

The grants also reflect Blue Cross NC's broader work to address non-medical drivers of health, factors outside the doctor's office that have a significant impact on health outcomes and costs. Through initiatives like pilots to provide transportation so members can access needed care and community-based Food Is Medicine partnerships, Blue Cross NC is testing and scaling practical solutions that remove real-world barriers to care, improve health outcomes, and make health care more affordable by addressing the root causes that shape health every day.

To learn more about Food Is Medicine efforts in North Carolina, visit ncfoodismedicine.org. To learn more about Blue Cross NC's Health Through Food strategy, visit bluecrossnc.com.

About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (Blue Cross NC), the leading not-for-profit health plan in North Carolina, is committed to improving the health and well-being of its customers and communities. Since 1933, the company has developed programs and initiatives that give North Carolinians the opportunity to live healthier lives. Blue Cross NC serves more than 4.1 million members, including approximately 1.2 million on behalf of other Blue Plans. Blue Cross NC is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. Visit Blue Cross NC online at www.bluecrossnc.com.