Overview
The link between nutrition and chronic disease is no longer up for debate—it's a driving force in population health. From obesity and diabetes to depression and heart disease, the food we eat is central to both prevention and treatment. Policymakers, providers, and payers and—importantly—consumers are increasingly focused on how improving access to nutritious food can reduce health care costs, improve outcomes, and reshape how care is delivered.
This shift is already underway. State Medicaid programs and Medicare Advantage plans are integrating medically tailored meals and nutrition services into their coverage. The result? A surge in new delivery models, private equity investment, and growing demand for clear nutrition standards and scalable solutions.
At the same time, stakeholders are rethinking food production standards and tapping into public programs to drive population-level change. The momentum behind “food as medicine” is real—and it's accelerating.
How Manatt Can Help
Manatt helps clients navigate this evolving landscape—shaping federal and state policies, redesigning business models, and developing strategies that increase access to healthy food and improve health. Our Food and Nutrition Policy and Strategic Response team advises on:
- FDA Regulatory Processes and Policies on Food
- USDA’s SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children), and Child Nutrition Programs Regulatory Processes and Policies
- State Medicaid 1115, 1915, and managed care coverage, reimbursement, and distribution models for food and nutrition programs
- Dietary guidelines and standards
- Business and sustainability approaches and models for community based-organizations and private sector organizations
- Business and economic modeling to demonstrate addressable market sizes, health gains and return on investment
- Coding and reimbursement approaches
- Technical assistance and strategic advice to private and public sectors
