Ohio Association of Health Plans Honors CareSource with 2024 Pinnacle Award for Nutrition Program

COLUMBUS, Ohio (CARESOURCE) - The CareSource Culinary Medicine and Nutrition Program, an innovative effort to eliminate barriers to healthy nutrition among people with diabetes, was recognized with a 2024 Pinnacle Award from the Ohio Association of Health Plans (OAHP). The Pinnacle Award ceremony is the culmination of the OAHP Annual Convention & Trade Show, held this week in Columbus.

Pinnacle Awards are given to recognize innovative efforts by OAHP members that help address persistent health care challenges and inequities. Entries were judged and winners chosen by a panel of health industry professionals.

“Every year, the Pinnacle Awards are the perfect capstone to the convention,” said Kelly O’Reilly, OAHP president and chief executive officer. “We’re all focused on ways to make health care better and more accessible, and these terrific ideas serve as an inspiration to all of us.”

Launched in 2023, the CareSource Culinary Medicine and Nutrition Program supports the 12.3% of Ohio residents who have been diagnosed with diabetes. Healthy eating and lifestyles are key, but many face barriers like physical limitations, lack of knowledge about healthy food, and limited cooking skills or kitchen equipment.

Claire Rodehaver and Dr. Judith Davis from CareSource. (Photo: CareSource)

“We are so grateful to be recognized with a Pinnacle Award and I am proud of all my CareSource colleagues who make this program a success and who earned this honor,” said Dr. Judith Davis, vice president of care coordination at CareSource. “Creating innovative ways to empower our members to take control of their health and tear down barriers that may hold them back is a core principle at CareSource. We are sharing our learnings from the program to help more people with diabetes live healthier lives.”

The program’s Teaching Kitchen Model combats those barriers with partners around the state including Goodwill, YMCA, County Corp Housing, Wright State University, Mercy Health Toledo and the city of Cincinnati. Objectives include enhancing knowledge of nutrition among Ohio Medicaid members through personalized dietary counseling with registered nutritionists; helping members overcome barriers to good nutrition and collaborating with community partners via shared programming, mutual referrals and shared decision-making.

“The Teaching Kitchen Model is a unique setup,” said Robin Carter Moore, executive director of the YMCA of Greater Dayton. “It teaches people in my community with high blood pressure and diabetes to eat better and cook better. It gives people the chance to gather in a comfortable atmosphere and talk about their health issues.”

So far, more than 3,000 Ohio Medicaid enrollees have received benefits through the program including free access to Weight Watchers, free six-month YMCA memberships, and in-person cooking and nutrition classes. CareSource also has created a new care coordination role for registered dietitians, who follow up with members to celebrate successes, suggest and connect with additional resources, and offer ongoing lifestyle support.

CareSource is already seeing results. In the months prior to joining the program, 33% of CareSource Ohio members had emergency department (ED) visits related to their diabetes. Among those enrolled in the Teaching Kitchen program, only 8% had diabetes-related ED visits in the six-month period after the classes.

Recently, CareSource was invited to present the Teaching Kitchen Model at the American Public Health Conference in Minneapolis. The research will be featured in related literature.