Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** southwest virginia produce RX…

Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** southwest virginia produce RX (swprx) is a regional, collaborative project led by food access, healthcare, university, and community partners. The project's goals are to 1) expand swprx that prioritizes community-based food and health resources in rural and urban localities in SW virginia, 2) evaluate effectiveness of swprx to engage the target audience, increase food security, improve fruit and vegetable consumption, and improve participant health, 3) improve participant-level outcomes and healthcare utilization, and 4) establish flexible and sustainable implementation strategies. The swprx project builds on over ten years of experience implementing and refining small scale produce prescription programs in underserved communities in roanoke city. Swprx food and healthcare systems partners' strong and integrated infrastructure will support expansion across diverse, underrepresented communities in southwest virginia. Patients receiving care in roanoke city, franklin county, floyd county, and radford city who are enrolled in medicaid and have elevated HBA1C and/or blood pressure will be identified by their healthcare provider and referred to the swprx program.over three years, the swprx program will provide 300+ participants with a six-month intervention that includes ongoing support, nutrition education, and weekly fresh produce RX to be redeemed on-site at nutrition education classes, at participating virginia fresh match firms, and/or at participating food pantry sites. Swprx participants will learn about and integrate into community-based programs and resources to support their long-term health and health behaviors. Learnings from the swprx expansion will highlight opportunities and implementation challenges of integrating produce RX programs into community food and health systems.