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Increasing Obesity Incidence
Health advocates, including the PFCD, have been sounding the horn for years for policymakers to take up the mantle and aggressively address our nation’s high child and adult obesity rates. A new study from the University of Michigan Health System demonstrates the need for immediate action, even...
Apr 09, 2010
Response to BusinessWeek’s “Take Your Meds, Exercise—and Spend Billions”
Several days ago, BusinessWeek’s Chad Terhune and Arlene Weintraub argued in an online article that when it comes to “so-called disease management, [there’s] scant evidence that it works.” I was surprised to read this, as when I spoke to Terhune before he wrote the article, I provided him with a...
Feb 12, 2010
Real Health Care Reform
Health reform had a tough day. But we are not giving up yet. As we go forward we must focus on two facts that shape the expectations about health care reform. First 85% of Americans have health insurance and second 96% of voters in the last election had health insurance—their expectation is that...
Jan 21, 2010
Common Sense Health Care Reforms
Much of the health care reform debate has focused on a couple of controversial provisions: what role, if any, for a public plan; abortion and federal funding in the exchanges; can illegal immigrants buy insurance with their own money; and how to pay for the coverage expansions. With these more...
Jan 07, 2010
Response to WJS op-ed on cost containment
Interesting Wall Street Journal op-ed today questioning whether there is enough cost containment in the current Congressional health care bills. A legitimate question, to be sure. Wherever you come down on answering this question, however, their prescribed approach will not only not slow the rise...
Dec 14, 2009
Incentivize Healthy Living, Reward Healthy Behaviors
I commend Mort Kondracke for his Nov. 23 Roll Call commentary, “Is Congress Serious About Fighting Chronic Diseases?” He gets to the heart of the issue of what health reform should be about – improving health and helping Americans fight obesity and other chronic conditions. I appreciate him...
Dec 01, 2009
Senate health bill comes in at $849B
November 18, 2009 The Hill By: Jeffrey Young "The Senate healthcare bill soon to be unveiled by Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) would spend $849 billion over 10 years to cover 31 million of the uninsured and reduce the federal budget deficit by $127 billion over 10 years....
Nov 19, 2009
Read More About America's Health Rankings Report
"Obesity Epidemic" -- ABC World News Tonight (November 18, 2009) “Obesity Weighs Down Health Care” -- CBS News (November 17, 2009) “America's Greatest Health Threat: Obesity” -- Business Week, by Catherine Arnst (November 17, 2009) “Study predicts more than half of Ohio's adults will be...
Nov 17, 2009
Obesity Numbers Speak for Themselves
Want to know where obesity trends are headed in the next 10 years? Check out the 2009 America’s Health Rankings report, released today and sponsored by UnitedHealth Foundation, Partnership for Prevention and the American Public Health Association. The report contains new numbers – generated by...
Nov 17, 2009
Evidence Ignored, Prevention Misunderstood
On Nov. 3, the Washington Times published the editorial, “The myth of preventive care,” which suggests prevention is being over promised in the political rhetoric surrounding health reform. Once again we’re throwing the baby out with the bath water—saying that prevention never saves money is...
Nov 05, 2009

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