- Uber is adding groceries and over-the-counter medical items to its Uber Health services.
- It's the latest company to bet big on prescribing food as medicine.
Uber on Tuesday said that it plans to work with health plans and providers to prescribe food as medicine.
The program, in beta testing now, aims to be in place for health plans in 2024. It would allow healthcare professionals to prescribe groceries or meals to people, as well as over-the-counter medical items.
Uber is the latest company to bet big on prescribing food to prevent higher medical costs. Instacart in March launched digital tools to allow doctors to prescribe food the way they might prescribe a medication. Meanwhile, companies like Kroger and investors like Andreessen Horowitz are betting big on the approach.
Healthier eating habits could reduce the need for some medications to treat chronic conditions like diabetes or heart disease or prevent them from progressing to the point where a person needs additional medications or care.
Healthier eating members could have major financial implications for insurers. One study published in October found that insurers could save $13.6 billion in annual medical spending and prevent 1.6 million hospitalizations by providing meals tailored to an individual's needs.
Caitlin Donovan, global head of Uber Health, told Insider that over the last year, there have been more opportunities for health plans to provide groceries and meals as a benefit.
"Candidly, Uber Health integration with Uber Eats and Uber Eats' grocery and convenience network, in my opinion, was the perfect way to scale some of those programs," Donovan said.
Prescribing meals and groceries
Since 2018, Uber has worked with health plans in the US mainly behind the scenes to offer services to members, like transportation, particularly for the elderly on Medicare plans and those on Medicaid plans serving low-income Americans. It's also delivered medications.
Anyone from a doctor to a care coordinator can log on to Uber's health platform and determine which patients might need groceries or restaurant delivery and get them sent to the patient.
Donovan said the idea is to ensure people can use the supplemental benefits of their health plan.
"You want to do it in a way that removes the friction and homework for the patient and creates that convenient one-stop shop for all in different points in the ecosystem," she said.
Healthcare could be a big business for Uber
In Uber's first-quarter earnings call in May, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi referred to Uber Health as one of the company's "growth bets."
Uber said in a news release that its gross bookings for Health grew by 75% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the first quarter of 2022. Donovan, who joined Uber in 2021, pointed to that growth as evidence there's demand for Uber's approach to healthcare.
"When you combine demand for healthcare services with the core competencies of Uber with the ability to do good, I think that's a very powerful confirmation that speaks to why Uber Health is part of Uber," Donovan said.