119-hres712

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 712 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

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119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
H. RES. 712

 Expressing support for the designation of September 14, 2025, as 
 ``National Food is Medicine Day''.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 September 15, 2025

Mr. Evans of Pennsylvania (for himself, Mr. Buchanan, and Mr. McGovern) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
 on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 
Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
 jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

 RESOLUTION

 Expressing support for the designation of September 14, 2025, as 
 ``National Food is Medicine Day''.

Whereas nutritious food is essential to the health of Americans;
Whereas using food as medicine has been proven by peer-reviewed science to be an 
 effective and promising medical intervention for individuals to prevent, 
 manage, and treat certain conditions alongside existing clinical 
 practices;
Whereas food is medicine interventions may include medically tailored meals, 
 groceries, and produce to support disease management, in combination 
 with nutrition and culinary education, as part of a patient's healthcare 
 treatment plan;
Whereas using food as medicine can be a cost-effective tool and sometimes cost-
 saving tool in reducing disease burden on individuals and the healthcare 
 system;
Whereas some of the most costly conditions in America are impacted directly by 
 diet, particularly chronic diseases;
Whereas more than 90 percent of the $4,500,000,000,000 that the United States 
 spends annually on healthcare costs are from chronic conditions, 
 including type 2 diabetes costing $144,000,000,000 annually and ischemic 
 heart disease costing $81,000,000,000 annually;
Whereas the combined healthcare spending and lost productivity from suboptimal 
 diets and food insecurity exceed $1,100,000,000,000 each year;
Whereas existing barriers to attaining and sustaining a nutritious diet 
 exacerbate health disparities for patients with chronic diseases;
Whereas food is medicine interventions are best leveraged when integrated with 
 consistent access to access to a secure, nutritious diet; and
Whereas established efforts by Congress, Presidential administrations, and State 
 governments with patient and community partnerships have laid a 
 foundation of support for policies on food is medicine: Now, therefore, 
 be it
 Resolved, That the House of Representatives--

    (1) expresses support for the designation of ``National 
 Food is Medicine Day'';

    (2) highlights the role of healthy food in the well-being 
 of all Americans;

    (3) recognizes food as a health care tool to prevent, 
 manage, and treat certain clinical conditions;

    (4) recognizes the utility of the food is medicine 
 intervention as a complement to population-level food and 
 nutrition supports for sustained positive health outcomes;

    (5) urges the Department on Health and Human Services to 
 sustain scientific research on the use of food as medicine to 
 integrate food as medicine interventions into healthcare 
 delivery through expanding and building upon the evidence base, 
 demonstrating cost-effectiveness, clinical impact, and 
 operational feasibility across diverse populations;

    (6) urges the Department on Health and Human Services to 
 collaborate with the United States Department of Agriculture to 
 best leverage the role of food as medicine; and

    (7) urges the Department on Health and Human Services to 
 scale the appropriate use of food is medicine in collaboration 
 with patients and non-profit and private industry healthcare 
 practitioners, providers, and payors.
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