The average U.S. family and their employers paid an extra $1,017 in health care premiums last year to compensate for the uninsured, according to a study to be released Thursday by an advocacy group for health care consumers.

Families USA, which supports expanded health care coverage, found that about 37% of health care costs for people without insurance — or a total of $42.7 billion — went unpaid last year. That cost eventually was shifted to the insured through higher premiums, according to the group.

“I don’t think anybody has any idea about how much they are paying because of the need to cover the health care costs of the uninsured,” said Ron Pollack, the group’s executive director. “This is a hidden tax on all insurance premiums, whether it is paid by business for their work or by families when they purchase their own coverage.” Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: Congress, executive director, insurance premiums, Obama, president, Ron Pollack, United States, USD

I was at the supermarket yesterday and while looking at the magazines I saw that Barack Obama was on the cover of one of the fitness magazines, I almost bought it to see why he would be on the cover but didn’t. I am still thinking about it today so I guess maybe I should go and pick it up this afternoon.

Anyway, back in May, Men’s Fitness magazine named Barack Obama one of its “25 Fittest” describing how Obama starts every day with a workout and generally skips fatty foods.

The magazine quotes former Duke University player and Obama staffer Reggie Love on the president-elect’s backetball skills “He’s wiry-looking but actually pretty strong,” Reggie said. “And he hates losing. He plays hard.”

Fitness advocates hope Barack can inspire Americans to get active just as he inspired young people, minorities and those who never voted to go to the polls. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: America, Barack Obama, Barack Obama Fitness, co-founder, co-founder of America on the Move, Duke University, DuPont, executive director, George W. Bush, James Hill, National Association for Health, obesity, Philip Haberstro, player, president, Reggie Love, role model, role model for physical activity and fun., Washington Sports Club

Obesity in children is an issue throughout North America and the habits that you learn when you are young are the ones that will carry through to adulthood. Bill Clinton has brokered a deal through his organization to have all schools offering healthier snacks by going through the manufacturers of the snack food themselves. This is a great good news story.

Just five months after a similar agreement targeting the sale of sodas in schools, Bill Clinton and the American Heart Association announced a deal Friday with several major food companies to make school snacks healthier — the latest assault on the nation’s childhood obesity epidemic.

“By working with schools and industry to implement these guidelines, we are helping to give parents peace of mind that their kids will be able to make healthier choices at school,” said Dr. Raymond Gibbons, president of the heart association.

The agreement with Kraft Foods Inc., Mars Inc., Campbell Soup Co., Groupe Danone SA and PepsiCo Inc. sets guidelines for fat, sugar, sodium and calories for snack foods sold in school vending machines, stores and snack bars. Those companies make everything from M&M’s, yogurt and granola bars to Frito-Lay potato chips, Snickers bars and canned soups.

Under the guidelines, most foods won’t be permitted to derive more than 35 percent of their calories from fat and more than 10 percent from saturated fat. There will be a limit of 35 percent for sugar content by weight.
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Tags: Alliance for a Healthier Generation, American Heart Association, baked potato chips, beverage industry, beverage industry leaders, Bill Clinton, Bob Harrison, Campbell Soup Co., Charles Nicolas, diabetes, executive director, food, Frito-Lay, Groupe Danone SA, junk food, Kraft Foods Inc., Mars Inc., north America, obesity, PepsiCo Inc., potato chips, president, Raymond Gibbons, snack food, snack-food industry, spokesman, sports drinks, William J. Clinton Foundation

It is no big story that obesity rates are rising in the US but there are new numbers out, and reccomendations from The Trust for America’s Health.

The gravy train — make that the sausage, biscuits and gravy train — just kept on rolling in most of America last year, with 31 states showing an increase in obesity.

Mississippi continued to lead the way. An estimated 29.5 percent of adults there are considered obese. That is an increase of 1.1 percentage points when compared with last year’s report, which is compiled by Trust for America’s Health, an advocacy group that promotes increased funding for public health programs.

Meanwhile, Colorado remains the leanest state. About 16.9 percent of its adults are considered obese. That mark was also up slightly from last year’s report, but not enough to be considered statistically significant.

The only state that experienced a decrease in the percentage of obese adults last year was Nevada.

“Quick fixes and limited government programs have failed to stem the tide,” said Dr. Jeff Levi, executive director of the trust, in explaining the rise.

Health officials warn that the incidence of obesity in a particular state doesn’t mean it treats the issue less seriously than others. States have different challenges to contend with when it comes to obesity, said Dr. Janet Collins of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Tags: advocacy group, Alabama, America, America's Health, BMI, CDC director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Colorado, director, executive director, hawaii, heart disease, Janet Collins, Jeff Levi, Jeffrey Koplan, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Nevada, nutrition counseling, obesity, Rhode Island, Trust for America, United States, USD, Vermont, West Virginia