What's happening
This bill creates a Healthy Savings Pilot Program to provide discounts on healthy foods in select New York cities to address food insecurity and health inequity.
Why it matters
Targets vulnerable communities. By focusing implementation in sections of three cities where food insecurity and health inequity are documented health issues, the program directs resources to areas most in need, potentially reducing disparities in diet-related diseases and access to healthy foods.
Broad potential reach. The bill mandates that at least one million people have access to the program, indicating an ambitious scale for a pilot and suggesting a significant potential impact on public health and food security if successful.
Emphasizes technology and accessibility. The inclusion of a companion phone application and website for real-time information on healthy discounts, as well as issuing discount cards, aims to make participation straightforward and information easily accessible for eligible residents.
Promotes sustainable partnerships and accountability. The bill requires the Department of Health to pursue funding and public-private partnerships with grocers and organizations, potentially leading to sustainable expansion. Annual legislative reporting ensures ongoing evaluation and accountability for the program’s effectiveness.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Discounts on Healthy Groceries
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to health
- Referred to health
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
2178
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 23, 2019
Introduced by Sen. BAILEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to establishing a healthy savings pilot program
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Article 2 of the public health law is amended by adding a new title 7 to read as follows:
TITLE VII
HEALTHY SAVINGS PILOT PROGRAM Section 268. Healthy savings pilot program.
§ 268. Healthy savings pilot program. 1. There shall be established in the department, by the commissioner, a healthy savings pilot program designed to reduce food insecurity and health inequity through the use of discounts on healthier food choices at grocery stores and supermarkets.
2. The department shall, through its own means or by partnering with a company which implements healthy savings initiatives, create a pilot program which meets the following specifications:
(a) at least one million people shall have access to the program across the program;
(b) the program shall have a companion phone application and website for showing which healthy food items are being offered at a discount at that time and where they can be purchased;
(c) discount cards shall be issued to those who apply for the program which facilitate the purchase of healthy food items at a discount;
(d) discounts in participating grocery stores and supermarkets shall be on at least the healthiest quarter of items sold in such location as determined by the commissioner; and
(e) the program shall be implemented in sections of three cities where food insecurity and health inequity are a health issue.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05633-01-9
S. 2178 2
3. The department shall pursue available funding and cost reduction options and make efforts to establish a public-private partnership with grocery stores, supermarkets, and organizations that promote healthy food choices.
4. The department shall be responsible for monitoring the quality, appropriateness and effectiveness of the program and shall report to the legislature within one year of the effective date of this section, and each year on January first of each year thereafter, on the program's effectiveness.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to establishing a healthy savings pilot program
Purpose or general idea of bill
Americans and New Yorkers are not consuming the minimum amount of fruits and vegetables recommended by the USDA, due to a variety of issues. The Healthy Savings programs seeks to incentivize consumption of these vital elements to a healthy life.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 amends article 2 of the public health law by adding a new title 7 to create the Healthy Savings Program.
Section 2 is the effective date.
Justification
According to the CDC only 12 percent of Americans eat the minimum amount of fruit recommended - a cup and a half to two cups a day, the and only 9 percent get the two to three cups of vegetables a day that are recom- mended. Healthy Savings war developed by Solutran, a Minneapolis-based technology company, which offers the program in several Midwest cities through partnerships with health insurance programs and employers. The program has been expanding in recent months.
The program ran a small pilot program in the Bronx recently, and the New York City's Office of Food Policy has jumped on board to expand the pilot program across the city. This program uses technology to offer consumers discounts on healthy food items, including fresh fruits and vegetables, by using a discount card, or an app that gets loaded with the discounts weekly. This bill seeks to run a statewide pilot program.
Prior legislative history
2017-18: Referred to Health
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.