State by State Analysis of Obesity Rates

Twelve states currently have an adult obesity rate above 30 percent, according to a new analysis released by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). The analysis used the state obesity rates released made available by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Mississippi had the highest rate of obesity at 34.9 percent, while Colorado had the lowest rate at 20.7 percent. Twenty-six of the 30 states with the highest obesity rates are in the Midwest and South.

“Obesity has contributed to a stunning rise in chronic disease rates and health care costs. It is one of the biggest health crises the country has ever faced,” said Jeffrey Levi, PhD, TFAH executive director. “The good news is that we have a growing body of evidence and approaches that we know can help reduce obesity, improve nutrition and increase physical activity based on making healthier choices easier for Americans. The bad news is we’re not investing anywhere near what we need to in order to bend the obesity curve and see the returns in terms of health and savings.”

Healthier Americans for a Healthier Economy

High rates of chronic diseases are among the biggest drivers of U.S. health care costs and they are harming our nation’s productivity. In fact, more than half of all Americans currently live with one or more chronic disease, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer. High rates of these diseases, which in many cases are preventable, are associated with increasing health care costs.

Recently, Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) released a report, Healthier Americans for a Healthier Economy (http://www.healthyamericans.org/report/90/), that features six case studies focused on the relationship between health and economic development. Read the full post...

Wellness Programs Save Money, Nonprofit Group Argues

“The employer community is increasingly looking at this as an economic, business imperative,” Andrew Webber, president and CEO of the National Business Coalition on Health, told a Hill briefing about the report on Tuesday. Chronic illnesses such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and cancer affect more than half the American population, according to Trust for America’s Health, putting a big drain on both government health care providers and employers who need to provide insurance.

Employers are finding that it’s cheaper to encourage employees to maintain a healthy weight, eat right, and encourage their kids to do the same, than to face a bill for medical crises related to preventable disease, Webber said. Healthy workers are also more productive. Read the full article...