Health care repeal would undermine efforts to reverse obesity epidemic

The PPACA made critical progress in addressing the cost of obesity by requiring insurance companies, for the first time, to provide coverage for preventive-health services, which include obesity screening (a doctor’s physical exam combined with a measurement for body-mass index) and nutritional counseling. In addition, the law provides for pilot programs and community based initiatives for obesity intervention and treatment efforts. It encourages early childhood nutrition and initiatives that engage communities that are disproportionately obese and overweight.

While it will take a comprehensive approach to address the various causes of obesity, these key provisions in the PPACA represent necessary steps in the journey to getting America back on track to a healthy weight. Absent these and other such reforms, we will continue to see Americans suffer from 60 related chronic illnesses, from heart disease, to diabetes, to hypertension and even cancer. Additionally, the nation’s obesity epidemic has even begun to threaten our military readiness — a recent report noted that nearly nine million potential recruits are too heavy to serve, and becoming overweight is one of the leading causes of medical discharges of active duty personnel.    

From any perspective, the statistics and costs associated with the obesity epidemic paint a picture that is unsustainable. It is worth asking: What will be gained from undoing an absolutely vital effort to combat a key underlying issue – obesity – that leads to chronic diseases that cost taxpayers billions of dollars every year?

For the sake of our nation’s adults and children, military readiness and economic health, we need to aggressively confront this challenge.