The Affordable Care Act, which strengthened the requirement that nonprofit hospitals provide “community benefits” in order to justify their tax-exempt status, has pushed some hospitals to treat hunger as a public health issue by screening patients for food insecurity and providing assistance. Toledo, Ohio’s ProMedica hospital system began screening for hunger last fall at some of its hospitals, signing up eligible patients for SNAP. Massachusetts General Hospital has screened senior and youth patients for food insecurity since 2008 and helps eligible patients apply for SNAP and WIC. According to the hospital, it identified 41% of the women visiting its Chelsea and Revere clinics last year as food insecure.
Source: US News and World Report, 2/13/14, Hospitals & Hunger
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