Cigna Healthcare Invests $1M to Reduce Food Insecurity for Seniors

Cigna’s health benefits provider, Cigna Healthcare, will invest $1 million in community-based organizations to address food insecurity among older adults.

“Too many people in our country, including older adults, face challenges with food insecurity, which can lead to worsening health and vitality,” JB Sobel, MD, chief medical officer for Cigna Healthcare’s Medicare business, said in the press release.

“Older adults are more likely to have various health conditions requiring specific diets to maintain and improve their health. Regular, reliable, healthy food can improve the health and vitality of those we serve, and we are committed to giving each person the opportunity to live well.”

The funds went to 56 organizations across 12 states focusing on helping seniors who experience food insecurity. The national and community-based recipients include local Meals on Wheels chapters, food banks, and senior- and veteran-focused coalitions and centers.

The investments will also support food- and nutrition-based programs like food pantries, mobile food deliveries, and nutritional meal boxes, the press release noted.

One funding recipient includes The Farmlink Project, a nonprofit organization that connects farms with surplus harvest to communities around the United States, making nutritious food more accessible. Cigna Healthcare is the first health benefits provider to sponsor this organization exclusively.

“We are incredibly proud to be partnering with Cigna Healthcare to rescue millions of meals this season,” said Aidan Reilly, co-founder and head of partnerships at The Farmlink Project.

“Access to fresh and healthy food is vital for anyone to reach their healthiest, fullest potential, yet millions of Americans struggle with food insecurity each year. Through this partnership, we will be able to provide access to fresh produce to families across the country throughout the fall and holiday seasons, a time when it is needed most.”

Cigna’s financial contributions are expected to provide more than 3 million meals to seniors in need, improve access to 1.88 million pounds of fresh produce, and save 21 million gallons of water and 2.89 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions in responsible food distribution.

According to Feeding America, one in 14 seniors in the US faced hunger in 2021. Furthermore, six in ten Americans have at least one chronic disease, per CDC data, which unhealthy diets can exacerbate. Research has shown that diet-related chronic diseases, including heart disease, stroke, and diabetes, account for almost 20 percent of annual US healthcare costs.

This is not the first time Cigna has worked to address food insecurity among members. In 2022, the Cigna Foundation donated $2.2 million to 16 schools with large populations of low-income students. The funds went toward stocking school food pantries and allowing schools to provide weekend food kits.

Other payers have also prioritized social determinants of health initiatives focusing on food insecurity.

In April 2023, Humana announced a partnership with the University of Northern Florida (UNF) to expand a program that helps seniors with food insecurity hurdles. The program, Meals on Wings, repackages food that hospitals plan to discard, and then UNF students deliver the meals to seniors who have been waitlisted for Meals on Wheels.