The Blue Cross And Blue Shield Companies To Tackle Childhood Obesity And Diabetes With Innovative Physician Toolkit

November 17, 2009

WASHINGTON – The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) has launched a new Pediatric Obesity and Diabetes Prevention Pilot Program in five states in an effort to help reduce childhood obesity and prevent future cases of diabetes.

The pilot program consists of an easy-to-use obesity and diabetes prevention toolkit designed for physicians that has convenient physician reference materials, as well as educational and behavior changing tools to share with patients and parents.  The toolkit, developed in consultation with the American Diabetes Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), encourages healthy choices and behaviors and will be piloted in collaboration with five Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies:

• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico
• Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City

"This is another example of how the Blue Cross and Blue Shield System is pioneering programs to encourage consumers to adopt healthier lifestyles," said Scott P. Serota, BCBSA president and CEO.  "With the Blues collectively covering the lives of more than 100 million Americans and working together with 80 percent of U.S. physicians, we have a unique platform to leverage this type of program and reach out to our nation's youth and their families to make a difference."

The toolkit, which will be distributed to pediatricians and family practitioners in mid-November, was crafted in part from a combination of materials already developed and proven successful by Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies around the country.  BCBSA has also worked closely with the American Diabetes Association and AAP, and included their input in the toolkit.  As a result, BCBSA was able to design a set of materials physicians can use to help parents and children become more motivated to adopt healthier lifestyles.

The toolkit materials display healthy messages from The Good Health Club, a group of animal characters.  The Good Health Club encourages kids to:

• Eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables every day
• Limit screen time to 2 hours or less
• Get at least 1 hour of physical activity
• Limit sweetened drinks to 0

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports that overweight adolescents have a 70 percent chance of becoming overweight or obese adults.  Obese children or teens are at risk for health problems like heart disease and diabetes – the two leading causes of death in the United States.  The prevalence of obesity among children ages 6 to 11 has more than doubled in the past 20 years from 6.5 percent in 1980 to 17 percent in 2006.1

"With nearly 24 million children and adults in the United States living with diabetes, and an additional 57 million Americans at risk, the status quo has become unbearable.  One out of every three American children born today face a future with diabetes if current trends continue, and that number is closer to one out of every two in high risk populations.  Diabetes is not merely a condition.  It is an epidemic," said Larry Hausner, CEO of the American Diabetes Association.  "We hope that with the distribution of the Pediatric Obesity and Diabetes Prevention Toolkit, we can further strengthen the importance of healthy habits and shape a better future for our nation's children and ultimately stop diabetes."

The pilot program includes more than 1,600 physician practices.  Toolkits will be tested through participating Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies, as well as through AAP's Quality Improvement Innovation Network.  "Empowering physicians with creative, easy to use materials to help them bring awareness to obesity as a serious health problem to young patients and their parents is critical to improving the overall health status of America's children," said Sandra Hassink, MD, FAAP, chair of the AAP Obesity Leadership Workgroup.

"Although chronic diseases like diabetes are among the most common and costly health problems, they are also among the most preventable." said Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., executive director, Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.  "As policymakers continue to evaluate healthcare proposals, hopefully they will see this program and others as signs that well-designed initiatives can be seamlessly integrated into the healthcare system to make it easier for people to lead healthy, active lives."

BCBSA and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies involved in the pilot will collect feedback and findings from physicians through discussion and surveys.  Upon conclusion of the pilot, BCBSA will use the findings to create a nationally-available toolkit to assist physicians, children and families in reducing childhood obesity and preventing future cases of diabetes.

References
1. Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Flegal KM. High Body Mass Index for Age Among US Children and Adolescents, 2003-2006. JAMA. 2008;299(20):2401-2405.