[…] Although I’m a bit perplexed by the $99,000 median household income figure cited in the Rand study, I think that the gist of the study – basically the fact that health care is eating up a huge portion of family and government income in America – is important for people to understand. We can’t tackle a problem without first knowing what the problem is. And one of the obstacles in the way of curtailing health care costs in the US is that our current system is so convoluted and complex that it’s nearly impossible to see all the areas where health care spending is impacting us – at the federal, state, and household levels.
obesity
Colorado Falls To 13th In America’s Health Ranking
America’s Health Rankings released their annual report this month, and Colorado fell from 8th place in 2009 to 13th place in 2010. Overall, Colorado does quite well in terms of current health outcomes, but we fall short in terms of some factors that could lead to lower health outcomes over time (insurance coverage, geographic disparity, and immunization rates). […]
Prescription Veggies
Colorado is the only state in the US with an adult obesity rate below 20%, but we’re just barely below that threshold. And according to the Colorado Health Report Card, our rate of obesity is rising faster than the rate for the whole country. I came across a NY Times article about a program that has been implemented in Mass recently, and I would love to see Colorado do the same thing. Maybe we could see our obesity percentage start to fall instead of continuing it’s upward climb. […]
Spiraling Prescription Drug Use In Kids
[…] The thought of 30 percent of adolescents being on medication for chronic conditions should make us all sit up and take notice. Hopefully it will fuel the cry for better school lunches and increased attention to prevention of obesity and mental health problems in kids. As a society, we simply cannot afford to continue to increase our utilization of prescription drugs.
Focusing On Nutrition To Prevent Cancer
[…] Colorado ranks among the top of the list in terms of how many people eat the recommended amount of produce each day, and yet the vast majority of our adults are not getting the recommended amounts (we only rank near the top because so many other states are doing so much worse). Health care reform has focused largely on expanding access to health insurance for the millions of Americans who are currently uninsured, and that’s a good start. But eliminating tobacco use and increasing access to nutritious food could go a long way in terms of improving the health of the American people.
Efforts Underway To Improve Colorado Health Report Card Score
Last week I wrote about the poor results – specifically for children – on the Colorado Health Report Card. Governor Ritter has issued an explanation about the poor results, detailing how the numbers used in the report card are largely outdated (from 2007), and that many improvements have since been made in terms of the health of Colorado children. […] I’m hopeful that the next Colorado Health Report Card will show a big improvement across the board, but especially in the area of children’s health.
Poor Results On The Colorado Health Report Card
The 2009 Colorado Health Report Card was just released, and the score for healthy children slipped from a C- in 2008 to a D+ in 2009. I find it particularly interesting that our state ranks at the very top of the list in terms of the percentage of adults who are obese (we’re the only state in the nation with less than a 20% adult obesity rate) and yet our kids aren’t even close to the top of the list, with 22 states having lower childhood obesity rates. […]
Definition Of Candy In HB 1191 Is Too Narrow
[…] At first glance, I’m in favor of HB 1191. I believe that our health care costs will not truly be contained until our overall health improves, and I believe we need to focus on much better eating patterns in order to make that happen. Taxes levied on foods like soft drinks is a good place to start. But Enstrom’s complaints made me look a little more closely. […]
Grand Rounds Vol. 6 No. 8
How To Cope With Pain brings us a truly amazing video. It’s a reminder to be thankful for all that we have, and for the things in life (like this video) that inspire us. It’s well worth the five minutes it takes to watch it.
Amy Tenderich of Diabetes Mine shares a “would you rather…?” moment from her 9-year old daughter. It’s a poignant reminder, seen through the eyes of a child, that all of the parts of our lives – even the bad parts – combine to make us who we are […]
Obesity As A Pre-Existing Condition
[…] I can see the benefit to making sure that everyone gets accepted for health insurance, as it’s counterproductive for society as a whole to have people who are uninsured. But I believe that it makes sense for obese applicants, and tobacco users, to pay more for their health insurance in order to offset the higher claims they are statistically likely to have. […]
Maybe The Big Picture Should Be About More Than Money
So it turns out that losing weight won’t save health care dollars. But it will make you live longer. A Dutch study has concluded that lifetime health care costs are actually higher for normal-weight, non smokers than for their peers who are obese or who use tobacco. But what about health care dollars per year… Read more about Maybe The Big Picture Should Be About More Than Money