Good public policy starts with understanding a public problem and being willing to change the approach as the conditions change.

Over time, our Board of Commissioners heard consistently from residents, service providers and community partners about the difficulty some households face getting to a grocery store, a pharmacy or both. The reasons vary – distance, transportation, mobility, and the circumstances of individual households – but the underlying issue was clear: access.

Our approach to that problem has evolved. Plans associated with the Northside Co-Op changed, but the need identified by the community did not. That change also created an opportunity to think more broadly about access – not only to groceries, but to prescription medications.

The responsibility was to keep working the problem and consider what other tools could reach people where they are.

That thinking helped shape the Food and Medication (FAM) Delivery Program, approved by the board and launched in August.

The purpose is simple: meet people where they are and give them reliable access to things they need.

The partnership between New Hanover County, the New Hanover Community Endowment, and Instacart provides eligible households in the county’s eight identified food desert areas with an Instacart+ membership at no cost. [Click here to learn more about the county’s identified food desert areas.] Delivery fees are waived on orders of $10 or more, and each household receives $120 annually in Fresh Funds for fresh food.

Participants can order groceries, but food access is only one part of the program.

Prescription medications can also be delivered through a participant’s pharmacy. For someone without reliable transportation, getting to a pharmacy can be every bit as difficult as getting to a grocery store. Missing that trip can mean delaying or going without medication that has already been prescribed.

The practical question is this: once a prescription is ready, can the person who needs it actually get it?

This program can help make sure the answer is yes.

The Endowment is supporting the two-year pilot with a $1.24 million grant. The program is designed to serve 2,000 households in its first year and as many as 3,000 over two years. At that scale, we should learn a great deal about what works, what does not and whether this approach should continue.

For many of us, stopping at the grocery store or pharmacy on the way home is routine. Ordering something for pickup or delivery is just as easy. For many of us, stopping at the grocery store or pharmacy on the way home is routine. For others, access is not nearly that simple.

The program relies on technology to make delivery possible, and for most participants that will be a familiar way to access goods and services. For those who need help enrolling or using the Instacart platform, our Health and Human Services team is available to assist.

Residents can apply at NHCgov.com/FAM, call 910-798-3500, or visit 1650 Greenfield Street from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Health and Human Services will track participation and results throughout the two-year pilot. If something needs to change, we will change it. If something works, we should understand why and determine whether it can be replicated.

No single program can eliminate every barrier that keeps people from getting the things they need. But this one can give as many as 3,000 households more reliable access to food and prescription medications.

That matters.

It is also a good example of how public policy can work: listen carefully, define the problem, adapt when circumstances change, and keep working toward a practical solution.

I am grateful to the New Hanover Community Endowment and Instacart for standing with New Hanover County in this work.