Police Launch Food Aid Program for Marion County

Indianapolis police officers will distribute emergency food bags and screen residents for food insecurity during crisis calls.

Updated on Nov. 11, 2026 in Heart Disease

Plain brown paper grocery bags with fresh produce rest on a concrete step outside a brick rowhouse in winter light. — Indianapolis police and the American Heart Association launched a program distributing emergency food bags and screening Marion County residents for food insecurity during crisis calls. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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The American Heart Association and the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department have launched a program serving Marion County residents facing food insecurity. IMPD Mobile Crisis Assistance Team officers will distribute emergency food bags and administer a two-question food insecurity screening survey.

Why it matters

The program connects residents in crisis with food resources during police and mental health responses, addressing food access as part of broader community wellbeing. Its rollout across Indianapolis aims to reach people who may not otherwise seek food assistance.

The Mobile Crisis Assistance Team responds to more than 2,500 calls each year, and each food bag contains enough healthy food to prepare at least one meal. The source does not state how many bags will be distributed or how program results will be tracked.

The players

American Heart Association

The American Heart Association is a nonprofit organization focused on cardiovascular health and disease prevention, which has supplied the emergency food bags for the program.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department is the municipal police agency serving Indianapolis, which operates the Mobile Crisis Assistance Team that will deliver the program.

The details

Each food bag contains enough healthy food to prepare at least one meal, nutrition education materials, and referrals to local food pantries and food assistance programs. Officers will use the bags on calls in all six IMPD districts, and the Mobile Crisis Assistance Team is paired with licensed mental health clinicians for crisis calls and after-hours visits.

• November 2026: Food bag use begins across all six IMPD districts.

Health Landscape

The program extends the American Heart Association's cardiovascular health work into local crisis response, linking diet-related heart health to food access. Its use of police crisis teams to deliver food resources is a departure from traditional clinic-based outreach.

Residents in Marion County who face food insecurity may receive emergency food bags and referrals to local pantries and assistance programs during police or mental health responses. The two-question screening survey lets officers identify households that may need ongoing food support.

The takeaway

Food access is part of heart health, and this program shows one way local services can reach residents during moments of crisis. Residents who need food help can ask for a referral to nearby pantries and assistance programs.