As the New Congress Gets Back to Work, the Last Congress Scores a "C" in First-Ever Obesity Report Card
While a More-Engaged Congress Still Missed the Opportunity for Major Improvements, A Bipartisan Group of Legislators Were "Top of the Class"
WASHINGTON, Jan. 12, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Campaign to End Obesity released its first-ever obesity report card, "Moving the Needle on Obesity: A Report Card for the 114th Congress," which gave the 114th Congress a "C" for its work on policy to address the U.S. obesity epidemic.
The Report Card found most of the obesity-related work focused on proposals providing more health care infrastructure to prevent and treat obesity and a large number of measures supporting more physical activity. Additionally, it noted a growing effort on Capitol Hill to recognize and attack the U.S. obesity epidemic as a national economic challenge—some $315.8 billion each year is spent by taxpayers to treat obesity and obesity-related conditions.
The Report Card highlighted 29 members of the Senate and House—14 Republicans and 15 Democrats—who were "Top of the Class" for their work to move obesity prevention and treatment proposals during the 114th Congress.
Campaign Board Chairman Scott Goudeseune, who is also President and CEO of the American Council on Exercise, praised "growing interest in the prior Congress in addressing one of the largest public health crises facing our country." Still, Goudeseune said, "There were missed opportunities that we hope the new Congress will take up. There is a lot of work ahead of us, and we hope to partner with Members in the 115th Congress—current and new champions alike—to advance meaningful policy solutions that can help lower obesity rates and promote vital long-term economic savings."
The Report Card evaluated legislative action and four other factors: general progress of key measures; how much traction those measures got; whether the proposal's policy content of would likely help prevent or treat obesity; and the preservation of important policy measures from prior Congresses.
To view the full Report Card, click here. For more information, please visit www.obesitycampaign.org.
About the Campaign to End Obesity
The Campaign to End Obesity brings together leaders from across industry, academia, and public health to provide policymakers and their advisors information and guidance needed to make policy changes that will reverse one of the nation's costliest and most prevalent diseases.
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SOURCE Campaign to End Obesity
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