Federal Policy · NM
Senate Bill Would Direct CMMI to Study Medicaid Coverage of Produce Prescription Programs
The Accountable Produce is Medicine Act of 2026, co-sponsored by Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and introduced in August 2026, would require the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to conduct a five-year study on whether paying for nutrition assistance programs improves outcomes for Medicaid and Medicare beneficiaries with chronic diseases. The bill would evaluate clinical measures including weight, blood pressure, and blood glucose. Currently, food prescription programs like Presbyterian Healthcare Services' Food Farmacy in New Mexico rely entirely on health system or donated funding because food distribution is not a billable Medicaid or Medicare service. Both House and Senate versions await committee consideration.
Why it mattersIf enacted, the bill could establish an evidence base for Medicaid reimbursement of food-as-medicine interventions, potentially opening a new reimbursable benefit category for states and managed care plans addressing chronic disease management and social determinants of health.