Posted on Wednesday, March 18, 2020 in News

At Mom's Meals, the health of our clients, partners, and employees is paramount. Whether in response to natural disasters, such as tornados that recently hit Nashville, TN, or the coronavirus (COVID-19), Mom's Meals is fully prepared to continue to meet our customers' needs, including for clients who may have limited ability to leave their homes in the coming months.

Company-wide COVID-19 Preparation

We continue to actively monitor the guidance from public health and regulatory agencies for COVID-19 related risks and prepare accordingly. We have formal Business Continuity plans in place and are also taking extra precautions to ensure ongoing continuity of service to deliver meals into clients' and members' homes.

• Supply Chain Readiness. Mom's meals consistently maintains close connections with our suppliers to ensure we can proactively address any potential supply chain disruption. We do not see disruptions to our supply chain that will affect our ability to deliver meals to clients on schedule. We will continue to monitor the situation and work with our suppliers to address issues if any arise.
• Kitchen and Fulfillment Facilities. Mom's Meals maintains two kitchen production facilities (IA and OH) and three fulfillment facilities (IA, OH, NV) that continually prepare, package, and distribute meals. Currently, the CDC advises food preparation is an extremely low risk mode of transmission. Regardless, Mom's Meals continues to reinforce our GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) Policy with kitchen and fulfillment teams - including strict requirements for handwashing and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). In addition, we have instituted additional cleaning, disinfection, and sanitizing efforts, including increasing the cleaning of frequently touched surfaces. Quality Assurance staff conducts equipment pre-operational inspections every morning to assure efficiency and efficacy of the Cleaning/Sanitation Program. USDA/FSIS Inspectors verify this program daily. 
• Distribution Capabilities. Mom's Meals delivers meals via 200+ home delivery drivers regionally located throughout the United States. All Mom's Meals drivers received training on safe distancing from members, use handwashing and hand sanitizers before and after delivering meals, not reporting to work with sign of illness per CDC guidelines. We also use third party carriers to provide nationwide coverage and an overarching model that can support our entire business if there are interruptions with any of our local drivers.

Meal Access
We are fully prepared to take action when necessary to ensure continuity of access to the meals our clients need, including those who may have limited ability to travel outside their homes for several months. 

Workforce Planning
Mom's Meals senior leadership team is currently meeting on a daily basis with front line staff to monitor and manage the unfolding COVID-19 situation. To date, we have implemented the following processes in an effort to limit the spread of COVID-19 and maintain the quality and continuity of our operations.

• All commercial travel has been restricted
• We have enacted our Work From Home policy for our non-production staff. This policy will allow >80% of our Customer Care, Intake, Billing and Corporate functions the ability to work from home
• As an essential provider, Mom's Meals is continuing aggressive hiring practices to ensure adequate staffing. We are closely monitoring staff of all our positions and are in constant communication with our internal human resource team along with our external staffing partners regarding staffing needs.
• We are using Personal Protective Equipment where appropriate. i.e. gloves, masks
• We have restricted non-employee access to all of our facilities
• To follow CDC Social Distancing recommendations we have instructed our home delivery drivers to not enter customers' homes when delivering meals

Additional Precautionary Measures
In planning for the coronavirus (COVID-19), we have also instituted the following measures:

• Providing ongoing information to all team members on the critical importance of good hygiene (e.g., regular hand washing, covering coughs and sneezes) and staying home if sick
• Reinforcing our GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) Policy with kitchen and fulfillment teams - including strict requirements for handwashing
• Educating employees on proper CDC recommended social distancing practices

Instituted additional cleaning, disinfection, and sanitizing efforts, including increasing the cleaning of frequently touched surfaces. Quality Assurance staff conducts equipment pre-operational inspections every morning to assure efficiency and efficacy of the Cleaning/Sanitation Program. USDA/FSIS Inspectors verify this program daily. 

We are continuously monitoring the national coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, reviewing guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and World Health Organization, and monitoring the environment for COVID-19 related risks. Per our Business Continuity Plan, actions are in place to prevent disruption in service to our members.

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About Mom’s Meals
Mom’s Meals provides fully prepared, refrigerated, home-delivered meals through Medicaid or Medicare Advantage health plan benefits or for direct purchase. Mom’s Meals delivers nationwide and offers many medically tailored options for different health conditions. Its long-term care, chronic care and post-discharge care programs allow clients to lead healthier lives while remaining independent at home. For more information, visit www.momsmeals.com.