Easton, PA – During a 10th anniversary celebration of the Good Food, Healthy Hospitals initiative, statewide health leaders today honored the 68 participating hospitals from 13 health systems serving residents in 31 counties. The program is an innovative nutrition initiative that aims to transform hospital food environments by increasing each hospital’s offering of nutritious foods and beverages for patients, staff, and visitors.
Representatives from the Department of Health (DOH) joined leaders from The Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) and the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) to applaud the participating hospitals for their achievements over the past decade.
“This year, we proudly celebrate a decade of transformation for Pennsylvania’s hospital food environments,” said Department of Health Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen. “Food is medicine, and the collective efforts of Good Food, Healthy Hospitals bring healthier food choices to patients, staff, and visitors every day in health care settings across the Commonwealth. This program works because small and incremental changes in diet choices translate over time to healthier Pennsylvanians.”
Established in the Philadelphia region in 2014 by PDPH, DOH began partnering with Good Food, Healthy Hospitals in 2018, with HAP joining the project three years later as an additional implementation partner. Five new hospitals and health systems joined the Good Food, Healthy Hospitals initiative in the past year:
- Doylestown Hospital
- Evangelical Community Hospital
- Indiana Regional Medical Center
- Mount Nittany Health, and
- Reading Hospital.
The initiative has since expanded statewide, increasing nutritious food and beverage offerings at hospitals in 31 Pennsylvania counties. From July 2024 to June 2025, it is estimated that the Good Food, Healthy Hospitals program implementation potentially benefited over 130,000 hospital staff and improved 13.3 million cafeteria meals.
“Hospitals do more than provide care; they make communities healthier,” HAP President and CEO Nicole Stallings said. “That includes helping patients build healthy habits around nutritious food to improve their lives. HAP is proud to help expand the Good Food, Healthy Hospitals program throughout the Commonwealth.”
Health care facilities participating in Good Food, Healthy Hospitals pledge to voluntarily adopt food, beverage, and procurement standards in areas of the hospital where food is served or sold, including cafeterias, patient meals, catering, and vending.
Participating health systems receive technical assistance from the Good Food, Healthy Hospitals team to support the initial implementation of the food service guidelines and to conduct annual assessments that measure progress and set goals for continued adoption of nutritious offerings and practices, including:
- Prominently displaying nutrition information of foods and beverages,
- Promoting water as a healthy and necessary beverage choice,
- Placing healthier beverages and snacks at eye level, and
- Purchasing locally sourced and sustainably produced foods where possible
This past spring, the Good Food, Healthy Hospitals program awarded its second round of Nutrition Security Grants, providing funds totaling $120,000 to eight participating hospitals for use in innovative projects that support nutrition security and health equity. Specifically, the mini-grant program sought to expand each hospital’s capacity to offer services and programs that distribute, promote, or support access to healthy foods within the broader community, beyond the physical boundaries of the hospital itself.
“The mission of the Philadelphia Department of Public Health is to protect and promote the health of all Philadelphians and to provide a safety net for the most vulnerable,” said Philadelphia Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Palak Raval-Nelson. “We launched the Good Food, Healthy Hospitals initiative in 2014 to build a thriving, healthier Philadelphia by increasing access to healthy, affordable foods and fostering a culture of health in local institutions and communities. Hospitals are natural partners in this work and have a unique opportunity to improve and support community health and wellness. We congratulate all the hospital participants on 10 years of excellence, success, and health!”
Continued expansion of the Good Food, Healthy Hospitals initiative is made possible by Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For additional information about Good Food, Healthy Hospitals, please visit www.foodfitphilly.org/gfhh or https://www.haponline.org/Public-Health/Nurturing-Health-Communities/Good-Food-Healthy-Hospitals.
More information on healthy eating can be found on the Department of Health’s website.
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