Fresh fruit and veggies: A new Seattle program is just what the doctor ordered

SEATTLE --  For some people, every day can be a struggle between paying for food or affording needed medications. And a new program in Seattle is trying to help. It's an expansion of the existing Fresh Bucks program. It's called Fresh Bucks Rx.

"It was harder to start eating healthy than it was to get clean and sober," says Seattle resident Dorothy Neal.

Neal is tearful as she describes her previous addiction issues, HIV infection and depression.

"I gained a lot of weight. And I had to get it down because I just wasn’t comfortable. So, I tried it myself and it didn’t work."

Neal's dietitian through Harborview Medical Center was there to help, offering both classes and one-on-one sessions on how to cook with fresh fruits and vegetables in every meal -- a big hurdle for many.

Dorothy's dietitian through Harborview Medical Center was there to help. They offered both classes and one-on-one sessions on how to cook with fresh fruits and vegetables in every meal, which can be a big hurdle for many.

"Preparing and cooking fresh fruits and vegetables is an issue with our patients," says Harborview Medical Center Dietitian Ben Atkinson. "Many people don’t know how to cook these days compared to previous generations."

And a special new kind of currency is helping, too. It's called Fresh Bucks Rx. A new program this year that's been tried in about a dozen other U.S. cities and now just growing here in Seattle. They're dollar-for-dollar vouchers her dietitian can prescribe to get over what many say is the biggest hurdle to healthy eating: the cost.

"The biggest reason is it’s going to help them is they’re going to feel like they can do this," says Atkinson. "They have the tools to do what they need to do."

Atkinson says the vouchers are good for any of the 30 year-round farmers markets in Seattle and King County. The funds for the nearly $2 million program comes from a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant, the Washington State Health Department and the city of Seattle's Environmental and Sustainability program.

Robin Kumar, with that city of Seattle, says the program is changing lives.

"The Fresh Bucks RX program really gives those people the ability to not have to make that choice between food and medicine."

And the money spent not only feed clients, it also feeds the local economy with the dollars all going directly to support local food growers. The program is funded through 2019, but clients who have seen it work for them, like Dorothy Neal, hope it continues far beyond then.

"Eating healthy makes my life better," Neal says. "I feel better."