RFK Jr hails first US hospital to promise healthier meals: 'We have a template'

A Florida hospital is the first in the nation to sign the "Make Hospital Food Healthier" pledge, committing to serve more nutritious, minimally processed meals to patients.

Tampa General Hospital CEO John Couris signed the pledge Thursday during a news conference attended by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins and celebrity chef Geoffrey Zakarian.

The 1,000-bed medical facility partnered with Zakarian last year to overhaul its menu based on the "food is medicine" concept.

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The revamped menu features items that are high in nutrition and "can help prevent, manage and treat illness," the hospital said in a 2025 news release announcing the partnership.

"If you go to your friend's house and you say, 'This tastes like hospital food,' that's not a compliment," Kennedy said during the news conference.

Kennedy said hospitals are places where people go to get healthy, "and we were giving them stuff that is going to aggravate and amplify their chronic illness."

"We doubled down on the quality of the food," Couris said of working with Zakarian on a limited number of menu items. "And we've seen somewhere around a 5% to 7% increase in our [food purchasing expenses]. That's something that we can absorb."

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Following the menu changes, hospital officials reported a 53% increase in perceived food quality and more patients finishing their meals, Fox 13 Tampa Bay reported.

During the visit, Kennedy and Rollins tried a menu of soup, mezze salad and steak prepared by the hospital's culinary team, Fox 13 Tampa Bay reported.

HHS and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services launched the "Make Hospital Food Healthier" pledge earlier this month as part of a broader effort to encourage hospitals to serve healthier meals with fewer processed ingredients and added sugars.

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In announcing the initiative, Kennedy said patients recovering from serious medical conditions "deserve better than ultra-processed and deep-fried junk foods."

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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services sent a notice to hospitals in March saying they would be required to follow the new Dietary Guidelines for Americans to continue receiving Medicaid and Medicare payments.

Kennedy pointed to Tampa General Hospital, which sources about 25% of its food from local farmers, as a model for other hospitals.

"We have a template here at Tampa General," Kennedy said. "We can say if they did it, you can do it."