Today, two-thirds of U.S. adults and nearly one in three children struggle because they are overweight or have obesity.  The effects of the nation’s obesity epidemic are immense:  taxpayers, businesses, communities and individuals spend hundreds of billions of dollars each year due to obesity, including an estimated $168 billion in medical costs.  Obesity is the reason that the current generation of youth is predicted to live a shorter life than their parents. 

Much can be done to reverse the epidemic, yet important opportunities to tackle obesity at the national policy level -- including changes that enable more Americans to eat healthy and be active, as well as those that provide appropriate medical treatment for patients -- have gone largely unmet.  The Campaign works to fill this gap.  By bringing together leaders from across industry, academia and public health with policymakers and their advisors, the Campaign provides the information and guidance that decision-makers need to make policy changes that will reverse one of the nation’s costliest and most prevalent diseases.

 

House Republicans Raid Prevention Fund
This afternoon, despite a veto threat from the White House, the House of Representatives voted 215 to 195 to approve legislation that would extend the interest rate paid on federal student loans.  The legislation was paid for by cutting funding to the Prevention and Public Health Fund created by the Affordable Care Act.

NewPublicHealh.org: The Cost of Obesity and ROI of Prevention
A new report, Assessing the Economics of Obesity and Obesity Interventions, by researchers from the Campaign to End Obesity,  looks at the costs of the obesity epidemic and the possible array of interventions that could prevent obesity and save the country money.

Obesity Costs take a greater toll on America’s health and economy

Today, the Campaign to End Obesity expressed concerns over new findings in a report by Cornell University researchers. According to the report, “The Medical Care Costs of Obesity,” it is now believed that the total cost of health care associated with U.S. obesity is $190.2 billion a year, or 20.6 percent of total U.S. health spending – twice as much as previously reported.

New Obesity Counseling Coverage Can Help Patients And Taxpayers
By  Joseph W. Thompson, MD, MPH, Surgeon General for the State of Arkansas and Director of the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement (ACHI). Dr. Thompson serves on the board of the Campaign to End Obesity.

With primary care medicine facing ever increasing pressures—fewer doctors to treat more patients and a continual maze of restrictions on reimbursement—primary care practitioners are trying to diagnose and treat obesity with one hand tied behind their backs. The result, unfortunately, is that for what is likely the nation’s costliest disease, strains on coverage have been yet another needless hurdle to getting patients diagnosed and treated in a clinical environment.

A comprehensive approach to diagnosing and treating obesity is just good medicine, and physicians need good reimbursement policies to make this practice practical. Fortunately, a recent ruling out from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is one bright spot in beginning to change this trend. CMS has ruled that it will cover services for high intensity obesity counseling. 

Congressional Workshop to Explore Fact vs. Fiction in Obesity Policy
On Thursday, July 14, the Campaign to End Obesity will convene congressional staff, key members of the public health community and industry to identify causes of the obesity epidemic and potential solutions. “Fact v. Fiction: The TRUTH about Obesity in America” will consider what science says are the main contributors to overweight and obesity; what is being done at the community and policy levels in response to the epidemic; and what hurdles exist in treating obesity.

Campaign Names New Board Chair

The Campaign to End Obesity today announced that Karen Licitra, Johnson & Johnson Company Group Chairman and Worldwide Franchise Chairman for Ethicon Endo-Surgery will assume the position of Board Chair.

Campaign Lauds IOM Recommendations for Early Childhood Obesity Prevention
The Campaign to End Obesity today applauded policy recommendations in a new Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Policies.

Campaign Honors Congressional Champions for Work Combating Obesity 
The Campaign to End Obesity recognized eight outstanding Members of Congress whose work has been instrumental in moving forward provisions to end the obesity epidemic. In its fourth annual “Breakfast with Champions,” leaders from across industry, academia and public health convened to acknowledge these key players in health care, nutrition and transportation policy, among other areas. The event also served to encourage these visionaries’ colleagues to take up needed reforms that will reverse one of America’s costliest medical challenges.

 

The Campaign to End Obesity announced the addition of Dr. Joe Thompson to its Board of Directors. Thompson brings significant expertise from both clinical and policy perspectives as Surgeon General for the State of Arkansas, Director of the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement (ACHI) and Director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood Obesity (RWJF Center).

Read More