Tackling food issues

Annex Teen Clinic offers sexual healthcare and education to youth aged 15 to 25 in Northwest Hennepin County and North Minneapolis. These communities face systemic barriers that limit care access. Most patients are low-income and BIPOC.

About 87% live in households facing financial trouble. Almost half of them lack any income. Annex knows that food insecurity affects health. So, it expanded its services to better support youth needs.

The Annex started the Food Rx program with support from the Hennepin County Statewide Health Improvement Partnership (SHIP) — a Minnesota Department of Health led initiative. This initiative partners with Second Harvest Heartland’s Kitchen Coalition.

It “prescribes” nutritious, ready-made meals to patients who mention food insecurity during visits. Each Food Rx includes six meals for every person in the household. This helps reduce hunger and improve well-being.

SHIP funding allowed the clinic to buy a freezer and storage shelving. It also helped develop protocols to integrate food access into patient intake. Nurses carry out safety screenings using focused questions. This helps staff identify patients who don’t have enough food.

They can then give meals right after their appointments. Since launching in June 2025, the team has distributed over 100 meals.

Annex Teen Clinic includes food access in sexual health services. This creates a care model that tackles key social health factors. This partnership with SHIP boosts the clinic's support for youth health. It helps those facing barriers. It shows how working together and finding new solutions can help vulnerable groups.