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Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center Health Care System
Coler-Goldwater Specialty Hospital and Nursing Facility
Coney Island Hospital
Dr. Susan Smith McKinney Nursing and Rehabilitation Center
Elmhurst Hospital Center
Gouverneur Health Nursing Home
Harlem Hospital Center
Hospital for Joint Diseases, NYU Langone Medical Center
Jacobi Medical Center
Kings County Hospital Center
Lincoln Medical And Mental Health Center
Maimonides Medical Center
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
Metropolitan Hospital Center
Montefiore Medical Center -- Children’s Hospital at Montefiore
Montefiore Medical Center -- Jack D. Weiler Hospital
Montefiore Medical Center -- Moses Hospital
Montefiore Medical Center -- Wakefield Hospital
New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center
New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center
New York-Presbyterian/Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital
New York-Presbyterian/The Allen Hospital
North Central Bronx Hospital
Queens Hospital Center
Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, NYU Langone Medical Center
Sea View Hospital Rehabilitation Center & Home
St. Barnabas Hospital
The Mount Sinai Hospital
Tisch Hospital, NYU Langone Medical Center
Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center
Wyckoff Heights Medical Center
NEW YORK—Around 30 hospitals throughout the city are introducing healthier food choices to replace high-calorie, processed options in vending machines, cafeterias, and patient meals.
The change, as a part of the voluntary Healthy Hospital Food Initiative, will impact more than 125,000 hospital employees and millions of patients annually, the New York City Health Department announced Tuesday.
“Hospitals should set the standard for promoting healthy behaviors and with this initiative in New York City, they are doing just that,” Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said in a release.
Obesity-related health problems cost private employers $73 billion a year nationally, and more than half (57 percent in 2010) of the adults in the city are overweight or obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We need to recognize that on an individual level, obesity underlies or exacerbates most chronic disease today, including diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers,” said Kenneth Davis, CEO and president of the Mount Sinai Medical Center.
Beverage options in 700 vending machines at 21 participating hospitals have already been altered to decrease the availability of high calorie sodas and juices, while putting healthier options in more prominent places.
Food vending machines are receiving similar treatment at 22 hospitals to increase the availability of healthier snack options.
Cafeterias in 11 hospitals have also started increasing the availability of fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains while limiting high-calorie beverages and eliminating fried foods.Patient meals will also need to meet certain nutritional requirements, such as sodium limitations for bread and cereals, and two servings of fruit or vegetables at lunch and dinner.
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