Grocery delivery company Instacart announced the launch of a new benefit in partnership with Mount Sinai Solutions, a division of Mount Sinai Health System offering health plans to employers and unions, to provide postpartum and postoperative patients access to grocery deliveries and Mount Sinai's Virtual Storefront. 

Patients insured by a Mount Sinai Solutions' employer or union health plan in New York City, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Florida, Pennsylvania and New Jersey will be allotted a $110 stipend for the episode of care to shop from their local grocery stores and national or regional retailers postoperatively or postpartum.  

Members will also have access to the Mount Sinai Virtual Storefront, powered by Instacart, where they can access provider-recommended foods and goods suggested by Mount Sinai experts. 

"Mount Sinai Solutions and our Centers of Excellence are designed to be hyper-focused on a patient's end-to-end care journey to improve outcomes while driving down costs associated with readmittance or ER visits," Lauren Lisher, senior vice president of specialty care and partnerships at Mount Sinai Solutions, said in a statement. "We are pleased to partner with Instacart to offer a robust grocery delivery solution that provides nourishing foods and essentials needed for a smooth recovery after hospital discharge."

THE LARGER TREND

Instacart launched its Virtual Storefronts offering in March, alongside its Fresh Funds program, which gives nonprofits, insurers and employers a way to provide money for nutritious foods. 

Earlier this year, the grocery delivery company announced it was collaborating with Partnership for a Healthier America, a nonprofit aiming to improve health equity through food access, which would supply stipends to address food insecurity to individuals in Indianapolis. 

Last month, the companies expanded their partnership and announced that the Good Food For All Program would be available in four new cities: Denver, Milwaukee, Englewood and Washington, D.C. The partners give $60 a month to families to spend on fruits and vegetables.

Instacart launched its health division last year, focusing on forming strategic partnerships, providing nutritious foods and advocating for food policy, such as expanding online access to TANF and EBT SNAP assistance programs.