Advancing Birth Equity Through Nutrition & Partnership
By LaShanya Breazell, Director of Birth Equity and Maternal Health, United and Guided
At United and Guided, we understand that birth equity begins long before delivery—it starts with access to the essential resources that support healthy pregnancies, strong families, and thriving communities. Nutrition is one of the most powerful, yet often overlooked, drivers of maternal and infant health outcomes.
That’s why we are proud to partner with Anthem Blue Cross and Project FoodBox to bring medically tailored meals directly to our Medi-Cal members.
Through this collaboration, we are able to connect individuals—particularly pregnant and postpartum members—to a Food as Medicine intervention that is both clinically guided and deeply rooted in community care. Members are referred through care teams or enrolled through our programs, and from there, they receive personalized nutrition support designed to meet their unique health needs.
Working alongside Project FoodBox, Registered Dietitians develop customized meal plans that support conditions such as gestational diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic health concerns that disproportionately impact underserved communities.
These meals are then sourced from local farms and delivered directly to members’ homes—often within 48 hours—ensuring timely, consistent access to nourishing food.
But this work is about more than meals.
It’s about reducing disparities in maternal health.
It’s about supporting families with dignity and intention.
And it’s about creating systems of care that are responsive, equitable, and sustainable.
By partnering with Anthem and leveraging innovative, CalAIM-aligned solutions like Project FoodBox, United and Guided is helping to close critical gaps in care—improving health outcomes while reducing the long-term burden of chronic disease.
Together, we are not just delivering food—we are delivering health, stability, and opportunity for the families we serve.