Congresswoman Barbara Lee and Secretary Xavier Becerra Hold Roundtable on Food as Medicine, IRA Health Wins in Alameda
Washington, DC – Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-12) and Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra hosted a roundtable discussion on ways food can serve as medicine on Friday afternoon in Alameda, California. This discussion recognized the successes of the Alameda County Recipe4Health program and strategized ways to prevent and address chronic disease through the implementation of a similar food as medicine program at the national level.
The roundtable, which was held at the Wilma Chan Highland Hospital Campus, was the second on the concept of food as medicine to be held by the Congresswoman in the East Bay. Following the first roundtable, Congresswoman Lee secured $2 million in the FY23 federal Appropriations Omnibus to begin a National Food as Medicine Program.
The Congresswoman and Secretary also touted various health care wins from the Inflation Reduction Act, including capping insulin copays at $35/month for Medicare beneficiaries; lowering health insurance premiums; and more.
“It was an honor to welcome back Secretary Xavier Becerra to the East Bay this afternoon. Thank you to all who provided vital perspectives at today’s roundtable: James Jackson, Supervisor Lena Tam, Roque Centeno, Dr. Steven Chen, and the incredible Recipe4Health participants in what was an insightful and constructive conversation,” said Congresswoman Lee. “I am so proud that my district is leading the way on a food as medicine initiative, thanks in large part to the incredible work of the late Supervisor Wilma Chan. Health care interventions such as Food as Medicine are achievable, but require the type of local to federal to private collaboration we saw today. I am leaving today encouraged that we can scale this program nationally to improve the quality of life for generations to come. I thank all of my colleagues, advocates, and community members who are engaged in the fight to deliver quality healthcare to all, and look forward to continuing to partner together on next steps for this program.”
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Congresswoman Lee is a member of the House Appropriations Committee and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations. She serves as Co-Chair of the Steering & Policy Committee, former Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, Chair Emeritus of the Progressive Caucus, Co-Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Health Task Force, and Co-Chair of the Pro-Choice Caucus. She also serves as Chair of the Task Force on Poverty and Opportunity. As a member of the Steering and Policy Committee, she is the highest-ranking Black woman appointed to House Leadership.