Nonprofit’s New Center Focuses on Healthcare Research, Policy Work and Provider Education

Community Servings today announced the launch of the AMPL Institute, combining the nonprofit’s 35 years of expertise and excellence in providing medically tailored nutrition with rigorous research, policy work and provider education. The name “AMPL” is an acronym for “Access to Medically tailored nutrition through Policy and Leadership.” The new center will lead efforts to transform the healthcare system so that medically tailored nutrition becomes a universally accessible standard of care.

“Through the AMPL Institute, we will build on our decades of experience serving the community and add to our bounty of research showing the health and economic benefits of medically tailored meals,” said David B. Waters, CEO of Community Servings. “We will explore new ideas and find new ways of serving as we continue to advocate strongly for system change that will increase access to nutrition for those in need, regardless of their illness, location or ability to pay.”

Community Servings was an early leader in preparing and delivering nourishing meals to neighbors living with HIV/AIDS. The “Food is Medicine” pioneer has grown into a program providing 16 medical diets to thousands of people with life-threatening illnesses like cancer, diabetes, and heart disease across Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Community Servings has also led groundbreaking studies showing that medically tailored meals programs can improve diet quality, reduce healthcare utilization, and lower medical costs for those living with complex, chronic illness.

The AMPL Institute will combine research and collaboration with other experts to advance the field and advocate for policy change at the state and federal levels. A key policy objective is to secure medically tailored nutrition as an established benefit in Medicare and Medicaid. In addition to research and policy, the AMPL Institute will develop Culinary Medicine and Nutrition Education programs to teach medical students and healthcare providers about using nutrition to prevent and treat diet-related complex health needs.

“Along with our ongoing service work that gives us a deep understanding of the individual needs of the communities we serve, we are equally focused on the broader health landscape through our commitment to impacting policy and our partnerships with others in healthcare, academia, community service, and government,” said Jean Terranova, Senior Director of Policy & Research at Community Servings. “Above all, the evidence that access to healthy, nutritious foods can improve health, change lives, and reshape the way we treat chronic illness in America is what motivates our work.”

The AMPL Institute team will maintain Community Servings’ longstanding tradition of collaborating with other leaders in the Food is Medicine space to advocate for systems change. This includes but is not limited to partnering with individuals and groups on research projects, policy work, and education initiatives. The planning and development stages of the AMPL Institute, including the creation of a comprehensive inaugural report on the Food is Medicine field, were generously funded by Takeda, as part of its ongoing commitment to support community-based partners and drive equitable access to long-term community health in Massachusetts and throughout the U.S.

Based at the nonprofit agency’s headquarters in Boston, the AMPL Institute is committed to advancing the Food is Medicine field by building on existing evidence demonstrating improved health outcomes and cost savings.

About Community Servings

Founded in 1990, Community Servings’ mission is to actively engage the community to provide medically tailored, nutritious, scratch-made meals to chronically and critically ill individuals and their families. For more information, visit www.servings.org.

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The AMPL Institute at Community Servings will lead efforts to transform the healthcare system so that medically tailored nutrition becomes a universally accessible standard of care.