NationsBenefits has integrated its Flex Card network with Food City, allowing eligible health plan members to use prepaid benefit cards at all participating Food City locations across Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, Georgia and Alabama.
The partnership enables members to purchase approved food as medicine items, over-the-counter (OTC) health and wellness products and other essential goods using the NationsBenefits Mastercard Prepaid Flex Card. Acceptance is powered by NationsBenefits’ Basket Analyzer Service (BAS), which validates eligible items in real time at checkout, eliminating manual claims and reimbursement delays.
Targeting high-need communities
Food City serves communities across the Southeast and Appalachian regions, where chronic disease rates are among the highest in the nation. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that conditions including diabetes, heart disease and obesity are concentrated in rural and underserved ZIP codes throughout the region – disparities that are especially pronounced among Medicaid and Medicare Advantage populations.
Michael Parker, co-CEO at NationsBenefits, said the integration is designed to meet members where they already shop rather than require them to navigate separate benefit systems.
“Food access and nutrition are foundational to improving health outcomes, particularly in communities facing higher chronic disease burden,” Parker said.
“By expanding Flex Card acceptance through BAS at Food City locations, we’re helping health plans connect healthcare to everyday shopping experiences and making it easier for members to access healthier food and essential wellness products where they already shop.”
Food City’s Role
Mickey Blazer, EVP of pharmacy and fuel operations at Food City, said the partnership extends the grocer’s community commitment.
“At Food City, we are deeply committed to serving the needs of our customers and the communities we call home,” Blazer said. “Partnering with NationsBenefits allows us to further support our customers by making it easier to use their healthcare benefits on nutritious foods and essential health items, helping families make healthier choices and stretch their benefits further.”
Health plans and healthcare organizations interested in NationsBenefits’ BAS technology can visit nationsbenefits.com/bas.
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