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Follow news stories about the partnership and its fight against chronic disease.
Study:Malpractice worries help drive health costs
Associated Press | April 14, 2010
The results support moving toward more integrated health care, and away from fee-for-service payments, and working on malpractice reforms, said Kenneth Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University in Atlanta.
Several studies link usage of electronics to obesity
The Brown and White | April 13, 2010
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease published The Almanac of Chronic Disease in 2008, which said, "If we improved our health behaviors, we'd eliminate at least 80 percent of heart disease and stroke, 80 percent of type 2 diabetes and 30 to 60 percent of all cancers - and that's just to start."
Senate confirmation only first hurdle for CMS nominee Dr. Berwick
American Medical News | April 12, 2010
"I've known him for 20 years, and I think this is a very positive development," said Kenneth E. Thorpe, PhD, professor of health policy at Emory University in Atlanta and executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. "It's a signal that the administration wants to do something major with quality systems, delivery system reform and financial payment reform. It shows they want to focus on quality and getting at the root of what is driving up costs."
New Chief, New Challenge at CMS
Congressional Quarterly
| April 5, 2010
Longtime colleagues say he also has a clinician’s sensibilities, having gained practical experience managing costs at the individual hospital level.
"I’ve known him for more than 20 years and have always been impressed by his vision of where we should take the health delivery system," said Kenneth E. Thorpe, chairman of the Department of Health Policy and Management at Emory University. "Running that agency requires a different kind of person than even 15 years ago."
Navigating the new healthcare bill
CNN | March 28, 2010
How does the new healthcarebill affect you and your family? We asked Emory University's Ken Thorpeto talk about some of the major changes.
Major health care changes won’t take place until 2014
Boston Globe | March 23, 2010
The people the high-risk pools will help are really hurting, said Ken Thorpe, chairman of the department of health policy and management at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University.
In the individual insurance market in Georgia, he said, "if you’ve got anything that looks like a preexisting condition, you cannot get any coverage at any price. I’m talking about asthma, moderate hypertension."
Crunch time for health-care bill
Columbus Dispatch | March 19, 2010
Kenneth Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University in Atlanta, said small companies would be able to avoid huge increases by having their workers buy insurance through the large insurance exchanges created by the House bill.
"I like the insurance exchanges because you won't have these wild increases in premiums in the small-business market. On balance, it's worth doing and moves us in the right trajectory. The impact on the uninsured is substantial, and it does the right thing in terms of insurance reforms."
Obama Takes on Insurance Companies in Healthcare Push
US News & World Report | March 13, 2010
"Healthcare reform became health insurance reform long ago," said Gail Wilensky, a former chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. But others say it's a start. "It's not worth killing the bill because we're not as aggressive as some of us would like," Ken Thorpe, chair of the health policy department at Emory University, said. "At the end of the day, what's in this is moving in the right direction."
The danger of the status quo
Washington Post Ezra Klein Blog | March 13, 2010
Weighing such factors, Nichols concludes that the "risk of doing nothing" exceeds the risk of passing the bill. In interviews, Emory University's Kenneth Thorpe and Stanford University's Alan Garber, two other leading health economists, guardedly echoed his conclusion. Both men believe that the current proposal could move faster to control costs. But both also agree that it contains valuable first steps and establishes what Garber calls "a good platform" for further reform. By contrast, Thorpe says, "under the do-nothing scenario, everything gets worse."
The Price Of Inaction On Health Care
National Journal Magazine | March 13, 2010
Weighing such factors, Nichols concludes that the "risk of doing nothing" exceeds the risk of passing the bill. In interviews, Emory University's Kenneth Thorpe and Stanford University's Alan Garber, two other leading health economists, guardedly echoed his conclusion. Both men believe that the current proposal could move faster to control costs.
Obama agenda: The price of inaction
MSN First Read | March 12, 2010
“Weighing such factors, [George Mason University’s Len] Nichols concludes that the ‘risk of doing nothing’ exceeds the risk of passing the bill. In interviews, Emory University’s Kenneth Thorpe and Stanford University’s Alan Garber, two other leading health economists, guardedly echoed his conclusion. Thorpe says, ‘under the do-nothing scenario, everything gets worse.’
Remote monitoring devices prevent complications of chronic diseases
Press of Atlantic City
| March 8, 2010
The biggest barrier to widespread wireless health use, however, is uncertainty about who will pay for applications and devices, said Kenneth E. Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. By and large, insurers will look to Medicare, the largest national payer for health services, to take the lead in setting payment rules, he said.
Going wireless with your health care; Remote monitoring devices aim to prevent chronic-disease complications
PhysOrg | March 4, 2010
The biggest barrier to widespread wireless health use, however, is uncertainty about who will pay for applications and devices, said Kenneth E. Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. By and large, insurers will look to Medicare, the largest national payer for health services, to take the lead in setting payment rules, he said.
Going wireless with your health care
MarketWatch | March 2, 2010
The biggest barrier to widespread wireless health use, however, is uncertainty about who will pay for applications and devices, said Kenneth E. Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. By and large, insurers will look to Medicare, the largest national payer for health services, to take the lead in setting payment rules, he said.
CNN Repeats Lie, Fails to Contradict Guest on 47 Million 'Uninsured Americans'
Business and Media | February 26, 2010
“Going to the facts are really important as we just have been talking about,” Thorpe replied. “According to the Census Bureau, about 46 million Americans on a typical day lack health insurance coverage – so that’s a fact.”
Chronic Disease Straining Medicare Budgets
New York Times Prescriptions Blog | February 24, 2010
If Medicare reforms are to accomplish the twin goals of improving patient care and cutting costs, the health care proposals under consideration have to do a better job taking into account the rise in chronic disease and shift in treatment patterns described in the study, said Kenneth Thorpe, a health policy professor at Emory University and the study’s lead author.
White House punts on containing health costs
Politico | February 24, 2010
“They thought [the tax] was a major part of their ability to slow the growth in private-sector premiums. And now, at least until after 2017, it doesn’t look like they will bend the cost curve,” said Ken Thorpe, an Emory University professor and Democratic health policy adviser.
Obama's health plan takes cues from Congress, but it's his own
Miami Herald | February 24, 2010
Dr. Kenneth Thorpe, a health policy professor at Emory University in Atlanta, said Obama's proposal is largely a political calculation.
The bill provides more assistance and relief to middle-class and working families, like the $1 trillion-plus House version. It's also less expensive and more moderate, however, in the mold of the $872 billion Senate health bill.
Guest opinion: Health-care legislation discourages prevention
Des Moines Register | February 24, 2010
Here in Iowa, the top three leading causes of death are heart disease, cancer and stroke. According to the national Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, nearly two in every five Iowans suffer from at least one chronic disease. Heart disease is the most prevalent chronic disease, affecting 28 percent of Iowans - according to Healthy Iowans: Iowa Chronic Disease Report - and costing nearly $3.5 billion in our state.
99 percent of Medicare for chronic disease
UPI | February 22, 2010
Ken Thorpe, executive director of Emory University's Center for Entitlement Reform and chairman of the Rollins School of Public Health, and David Walker, president and chief executive officer of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation and former comptroller general of the United States, said projected growth in Medicare spending is the single largest factor behind projections of unsustainably high deficits.
The link between obesity and the federal deficit
Atlanta Journal Constitution | February 22, 2010
"You see it in the Medicare population just as you see it in the general population," Thorpe said. "The prevalence of obesity among senior citizens has doubled. Virtually all the increase in diabetes - that’s all due to obesity."
Thorpe is executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. He’s got a good blog going on the health care overhaul.
Childhood obesity bad for kids and the country
Atlanta Journal Constitution | February 19, 2010
Emory University’s Kenneth Thorpe, a professor of public health, says that it’s a leading cause of soaring health care costs. In a report called "The Future Costs of Obesity," Thorpe estimates that Georgia currently spends about $2.5 billion a year in direct health-care costs related to obesity. If current trends continue, that would rise to nearly $11 billion by 2018, he says.
Why Medicare costs are so high
Marketplace | February 18, 2010
Researchers at Emory University say they've learned what's behind Medicare's ballooning costs. They looked at Medicare expenditures over 20 years. In 1987, hospital care was driving Medicare costs up. Today, it's outpatient treatment for seniors with chronic diseases, like diabetes and high blood pressure. Both linked to obesity.
The ObamaCare Tragedy
Wall Street Journal | February 9, 2010
"Many of us thought we were really at the one-inch line, then literally it was like being hit by a freight train with about 10 seconds' warning," said Ken Thorpe, a senior Health and Human Services official during the Clinton-era debate.
GOP: Back to drawing board on health care
USA Today | February 8, 2010
Kenneth Thorpe, a health care analyst in the Clinton administration and now a professor at Emory University, said there may be room for agreement. He suggested cutting the bill's cost in half, offering less generous premium subsidies, phasing in Medicare cost controls more quickly and including strong medical malpractice laws.
"There are some areas where you can get bipartisan agreement, if they're serious about really engaging on the Republican side," he said.
Michelle Obama's war on childhood obesity
CNN | February 8, 2010
Last November, a report based on the research of Dr. Ken Thorpe, a noted Emory University health care economist, found that 43 percent of all adults in America would be obese -- not overweight, but obese -- by 2018 if current trends continue. It was 15 percent in 1980.
GOP cool to Obama’s offer to meet on healthcare reform
Christian Science Monitor | February 8, 2010
It’s possible that it will indeed work, says one healthcare expert who worked on the failed Clinton-era attempt at reform.
That’s because for all the partisan bickering, there remain some areas of healthcare reform where the GOP and Democrats could reach common ground, according to Ken Thorpe, who was a top Health and Human Services official during the Clinton presidency.
Clinton-era staffers worry Democrats will quit on health care overhaul if Obama fails
Canadian Press | February 8, 2010
"Many of us thought we were really at the 1-inch line, then literally it was like being hit by a freight train with about 10 seconds' warning," said Ken Thorpe, a senior Health and Human Services official during the Clinton-era debate. Now a health policy professor at Emory University in Atlanta, Thorpe has proposed a scaled-back alternative in case Obama's plan can't get unstuck.
Obama's health summit faces long odds against success
Kansas Star | February 8, 2010
Medicare's trustees predict that its hospital insurance trust fund will be exhausted in seven years. The summit "can open up the dialogue about long-term entitlement spending, and create opportunities for the public to learn more about these issues," said Kenneth Thorpe, the chairman of the Health Policy & Management department at Emory University in Atlanta.
Clinton-Era Health Aides Push to Save Obama's Plan
Associated Press | February 4, 2010
''Many of us thought we were really at the 1-inch line, then literally it was like being hit by a freight train with about 10 seconds' warning,'' said Ken Thorpe, a senior Health and Human Services official during the Clinton-era debate. Now a health policy professor at Emory University in Atlanta, Thorpe has proposed a scaled-back alternative in case Obama's plan can't get unstuck.
Take Your Meds, Exercise - and Spend Billions
BusinessWeek | February 4, 2010
Support for the services has also come from the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a nonprofit founded in 2007 and funded in part by disease-management companies, insurers, and other medical groups. Its paid executive director is Kenneth E. Thorpe, a health policy professor at Emory University in Atlanta. Thorpe, who worked on health reform as a Clinton Administration official in the 1990s, says he has met regularly with congressional staff members to explain what the federal government should do to combat chronic disease. One important answer, he says, is disease management. Stone, the co-founder of Healthways, describes Thorpe as the industry's "go-to guy."
Health-care spending takes giant leap upward
Wall Street Journal MarketWatch | February 4, 2010
But many of the proposals now lying dormant in Congress to reform the health-care system would do little to bring down costs, said Ken Thorpe, chair of the department of health policy and management at Emory University. "We've done little to slow health-care spending in either the public or the private sector," Thorpe said.
New Jerseyans could soon be able to shop across state lines for health insurance
Kaiser Health News | February 3, 2010
"It always sounds appealing to offer more choice," said Kenneth Thorpe, an Emory University health policy expert and a health official in the Clinton administration. "But if you do look at it more closely, it does raise issues of regulation."
LHC adds public policy expert to board
2 The Advocate | February 1, 2010
Lafayette-based LHC Group Inc., one of the largest home health providers in the country, has appointed Kenneth Thorpe, co-director of the Emory University Center on Health Outcomes and Quality, to LHC’s board of directors.
Thorpe’s expertise on public health policies, in particular the impact of chronic diseases, will help LHC in its ongoing effort to develop best practices for treating the chronically ill, according to LHC.
Kenneth Thorpe, Ph.D., Joins LHC Group Board of Directors
iStock Analyst | February 1, 2010
LHC Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:LHCG), one of the largest providers of home health services in the United States, announced today that it has appointed Kenneth Thorpe, Ph.D., to its Board of Directors. Dr. Thorpe will serve on the Quality Committee.
Kenneth Thorpe, Ph.D., is the Robert W. Woodruff Professor and Chair of the Department of Health Policy & Management in the Rollins School of Public Health of Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. He also co-directs the Emory Center on Health Outcomes and Quality.Â
Fed up with fat and saying something about it
Los Angeles Times | February 1, 2010
"If we as a nation don't get any fatter, then excess weight would cost the nation $198 billion in 2018," said Kenneth Thorpe, professor of health policy at Emory and the report's lead author. "Obesity is a leading driver in rising healthcare costs. Between 1990 and today, obesity rates have doubled, and obesity now accounts for one-third of the increase in our nation's healthcare costs."
The Industry Outlook For 2010
Life Science Leader | February 2010
Our industry is working hard to address these challenges, joining a diverse group of stakeholders as part of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD). The collective goal of PFCD is to help community leaders learn about existing programs that are making a difference in improving the health of Americans in communities across the country.
Experts look at saving the health care bill
Minnesota Public Radio | January 27, 2010
One of the most popular health care reform ideas is restricting insurance companies from charging higher premiums or dropping policy-holders with pre-existing medical conditions. It's an issue that Ken Thorpe, who heads Emory University's Department of Health Policy and Management, says should be included in an alternative version of health care legislation.
Which way through the minefield?
Politico | January 26, 2010
Ken Thorpe, an Emory University professor and Democratic health policy adviser, has proposed scaled-down legislation that would refocus attention on insurance reforms that would make premiums less expensive. Thorpe supports current reform legislation but crafted the proposal in case lawmakers are unable to pass the Senate bill.
At about $500 billion, Thorpe’s proposal would be about half the cost of current legislation and cover about 20 million uninsured people by 2018. And, he said, it includes more robust reforms to health care delivery, cost containment and medical malpractice than current efforts, which could attract some Republican support.Catamount Health Architect On Health Care Reform
Vermont Public Radio | January 26, 2010
So if President Obama's plan for a national health care reform bill dies in the nation's Capitol, is there anything significant states can do without help from the federal government to change the system?
VPR's Mitch Wertlieb put the question to Ken Thorpe, a health policy researcher at Emory University in Atlanta, who is also one of the chief architects of Vermont's Catamount Health Plan.Â
Case managers can take a role in fighting obesity epidemic
Insurance News Net | January 26, 2010
The study, "The Future Cost of Obesity: National and State Estimates of the Impact of Obesity on Direct Health Care Expenses," was based on research by Emory University health care economistKen Thorpe, PhD, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. The study was commissioned by UnitedHealth Foundation, Partnership for Prevention, and American Public Health Association.
Obesity report warns of high health costs
Augusta Chronicle | January 24, 2010
Being obese makes you three times more likely to be diabetic, said lead author Ken Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University and the director of the Center for Entitlement Reform.
"Nobody had really drawn the link between the growth in obesity and how much of the growth in health care spending it was accounting for," he said.
Panic After Pelosi
Kaiser Health Blog | January 21, 2010
And The National Journal’s Marilyn Werber-Serafini asks her experts, “should Congress scrap health care reform or work on a skinny bipartisan bill?” Responders so far include Tom Miller, Jason Rosenbaum, Kenneth Thorpe and Grace-Marie Turner.
Obesity taskforce targets children
New Times | January 20, 2010
Obesity, which is defined as a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than 30, causes such severe health problems as heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, various cancers, and labored respiration. Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of the department of health policy and management at Emory University, predicts an obese person will face, on average, $8,315 in medical bills in 2018 compared to $5,855 for an adult who maintains a healthy weight.
My Turn: Lax rules drive up health care costs
Berlington Free Press | January 20, 2010
In 2006, the Legislature's health care consultant, Dr. Ken Thorpe, projected the unsubsidized premium for Catamount coverage would be $305 per month. Because reimbursements would be tied to Medicare rates, he projected an annual growth rate in premiums in the 3.5 percent to 4.5 percent range.
Democratic candidates closely watch Mass. special election
The Hill | January 18, 2010
Former Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Jim Ruvolo is working with the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, which has been supportive of the healthcare legislation in Congress. He said Democrats should stick by the bill and allow their leadership to explain it better.
GOP health care stance poses risks
Dayton Daily News | January 16, 2010
Ken Thorpe, a professor of health policy management at Emory University in Atlanta who served in the Clinton administration, said Democrats folded in some of the Republican ideas. He pointed out that the final bill will create large health care exchanges where the uninsured can select from a number of private plans that save them money. He said that accomplishes in a different way the Republican demand that small companies band together to buy less expensive policies.
Doctor: Fresh Approach to Health Research Would Save Money
Norwich Bulletin | January 14, 2010
Because of limited funding for comparisons, current medical research focuses on proving a new drug, service or device is safe and effective so it can earn Food and Drug Administration approval, said Kenneth Thorpe, a health-care economist at Emory University.
Ohio Ramps Up Efforts to Fight Childhood Obesity
Public News Service | January 13, 2010
Among the 50 states, Ohio is currently tied for tenth place in terms of obesity. A recent study from the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease found that, if current trends continue, more than 50 percent of adults in Ohio will be obese by 2018.
2009 in review: H1N1 pandemic tops our list of health stories
USA Today | January 1, 2010
About 34% of adults in the USA were obese in 2006, up from 23% in 1994. If people continue to gain weight, obesity will cost about $344 billion in annual medical-related expenses by 2018, or about 21% of health care spending, says an analysis in the annual America's Health Rankings. "Obesity is going to be a leading driver in rising health care costs," says Kenneth Thorpe of Emory University, who did the analysis.
A New Approach to Marketing Diet Drugs
Portfolio.com | December 29, 2009
Indeed, obesity is growing faster than any previous public health problem that the nation has faced, Emory University health care economist Ken Thorpe says. In a study he released last month, Thorpe concluded that if current trends continue, 43 percent of American adults will be obese by 2018, driving related health care costs to $344 billion, four times the amount spent now.
Morici Says Health Care Bill, CBO Estimates Based on 'Nefarious' Assumptions
Business & Media Institute | December 22, 2009
Morici's counterpart in the discussion was Kenneth Thorpe, chair of the Dept. of Health Policy & Management at Emory University, who claimed 18 million self-employed individuals would pay "about 60 percent less" with the bill.
Co-anchor Kiran Chetry asked Morici who the winners and losers would be under the Senate bill. Morici agreed with Thorpe that individuals without group coverage would be helped by the legislation, but said "the losers are typically moderate income - maybe make $40,000 to $100,000 - have group coverage with their employer."
Chronic care has major impact
Atlanta Journal Constitution | December 14, 2009
To truly "bend the curve" of health care costs in Georgia, local efforts must provide better support for those with chronic conditions. The rising cost of health care in Georgia is not a "coverage" issue as much as it is a "chronic" issue.
This "chronic curve" of rising health care costs is perhaps most evident in the country's largest health insurer, Medicare. Seniors with multiple chronic conditions are among Medicare's most costly, accounting for more than 75 percent of program spending. That's right, of the $455 billion spent in Medicare last year, over $341 billion of it went to care for those with chronic conditions - representing 11 percent of the nation’s federal budget.
Ken Thorpe Discusses Senate Health Care Bill on CNN
CNN American Morning | December 11, 2009
Editorial: Agricultural negotiator poor choice for lofty goals SouthCarolinaNow.com | December 9, 2009
Obesity costs our state millions, and it will cost our state $5.343 billion in additional health care costs in 10 years.
"It threatens to 'break the bank' of our health care system, and family budgets, if we don't take action." Emory University Health Care Economist Dr. Ken Thorpe said.
Opinion: Have a drink and share the sacrifice
The Hill | December 8, 2009
According to a recent study by Ken Thorpe, chairman of the Department of Health Policy and Management in the Rollins School of Public Health of Emory University, the obesity epidemic if left unaddressed will grow, increasing the healthcare tab in 2018 to an unsustainable $344 billion.
The not-a-public-option compromise, and beyond
The Washington Post- Ezra Klein Blog | December 7, 2009
The House and Senate need to figure out their revenue measures, and Ken Thorpe is right that more could be done on the delivery side.
Freshmen senators spending too much time on issues, not enough time chasing headline
The Washington Post- Ezra Klein Blog | December 7, 2009
"It's a big deal because you're trying to take a fragmented delivery system and force it to work together," says health economist Kenneth Thorpe. "In today's world, hospitals don't need to worry about re-admissions. It's just more revenue for them. When the patient leaves the hospital, the hospital's job is to wait for the next person to come in."
Obesity costs could quadruple by 2018
American Medical News | December 4, 2009
Thirty-eight percent fewer Americans smoke today than 20 years ago, but 129% more are obese, which threatens to cost the U.S. health system hundreds of billions of dollars in the upcoming decade, according to a new public health report. If trends continue, the nation will spend an estimated $344 billion in obesity-related health care costs in 2018, up from $80 billion in 2009, according to a supplemental analysis by Kenneth Thorpe, PhD. He's chair of the Dept. of Health Policy and Management at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University.
Ohioans must reverse obesity trend
The Chillicothe Gazette | December 3, 2009
The report is titled "The Future Cost of Obesity." Its author is Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., and executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. Dr. Thorpe paints a sobering picture of the economic impact obesity will have on national health care costs over the next 10 years if current trends continue.
Obesity Offsets Antismoking Efforts
Portfolio | December 3, 2009
Stewart predicted almost half of the U.S. population will be obese by 2020. Her estimate is close to one made by Emory University health care economist Ken Thorpe last month. Thorpe predicted health care costs related to obesity will surge to $344 billion, or four times the amount spent now, by 2018.
School districts sweat cost of efforts to combat child obesity
Delaware Gazette | November 30, 2009
Ohio children are among the fattest in the nation and their waistlines are only projected to swell in the future.
The obesity rate for Ohio children could surpass 50 percent by 2018, resulting in billions of dollars in health-care costs, according to a new study by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
It's not easy being lean
ENCToday.com | November 30, 2009
The future costs of obesity were considered in an Emory University study conducted by Dr. Kenneth Thorpe this month. The study’s findings were released by the United Health Foundation and the American Public Health Association and Partnership for Prevention. The report showed that obesity is growing faster than any previous public health issue the nation has faced.
The growing cost of obesity in Maryland (and the rest of the country)
Maryland Daily Record | November 30, 2009
Here’s something to chew on as we enter the holiday-food binge: Maryland is among six states where more than half of all residents will be obese by 2018. That’s according to a new report based on findings from Emory University health care economist Ken Thorpe, who heads up the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Ounce of prevention makes dollar sense
New Haven Register | November 30, 2009
If an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, what is failure to prevent the gain of innumerable pounds worth? Quite possibly the difference between national solvency and financial ruin. That is the rather dire message that emanates from a novel projection of the future costs of obesity by health economist Ken Thorpe of Emory University.
Health Care Savings Could Start in the Cafeteria
Gadsden Times | November 30, 2009
Obesity alone threatens to overwhelm the system. In a recent study, Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of the department of health policy and management at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, found that if trends continued, annual health care costs related to obesity would total $344 billion by 2018, or more than 20 percent of total health care spending. (It now accounts for 9 percent.)
Dr. Thorpe also said that if the incidence of obesity fell to its 1987 level, it would free enough money to cover the nation’s uninsured population.
Guest column: Obesity rate taking toll on society
Dayton Daily News | November 30, 2009
The report, “The Future Cost of Obesity,” was written by Ken Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. He paints a sobering picture of the economic impact obesity will have on national health care costs during the next 10 years.
If current trends continue, 103 million American adults - 43 percent of the population - will be obese by 2018. The news is even worse for Ohio.
Obesity poses major threat to health, costs
Times and Democrat | November 30, 2009
A new report based on research by Emory University Health Care Economist Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, shows increasing obesity rates in South Carolina and across the country will result in higher health care spending for states and individuals.
Can Americans stomach an obesity crisis?
PennLive.com | November 28, 2009
Whatever the reason, the fact is it is a problem. Recently a researcher from Emory University released a study called “The Future Costs of Obesity.” Kenneth E. Thorpe, says obesity is the fastest-growing health crisis the nation has faced. He predicts if the obesity rate continues growing at the same rate as today, by 2018 as many as 103 million Americans will be obese.
Weighty problem
Columbus Dispatch | November 28, 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease recently projected that 10 years from now, half of all Ohioans could be obese, up from 34 percent last year. Much of that problem begins in childhood.
Efforts are under way in government and schools to help families keep better tabs on kids' nutrition and weight. Bills in the Ohio Senate and House would focus on schools, requiring students in public schools to have at least 30 minutes of moderate-to-rigorous physical exercise per day and increasing the required number of physical-education classes.
Obesity is a growing problem in Ohio, with real consequences and real costs - editorial
Cleveland Plain Dealer | November 27, 2009
Last week, Plain Dealer reporter Sarah Jane Tribble wrote about a study released by Emory University researcher Kenneth E. Thorpe that predicts a U.S. obesity rate of 43 percent by 2018. He says that obesity in Ohio is likely to be even more prevalent.
Thorpe goes so far as to assign dollars-and-cents estimates to individuals for the problem of individual obesity. By his reckoning, health care services related to obesity cost the average Ohioan $433 per year today. He puts the average cost for 2018 at $1,877.
Will health care reform help keep people healthy?
Minnesota Public Radio | November 27, 2009
Ken Thorpe, who heads Emory University's Department of Health Policy and Management, gives the reform bills a "B."
"There is certainly recognition that rising rates of obesity and chronic disease are two key issues that are what we have to contend with, if we're going to get a handle on health care costs," said Thorpe. "The challenge is, are the proposals in the legislation aggressive enough and do they kick in fast enough?"
Congress Fights Obesity With Healthcare Bills
US News & World Report | November 25, 2009
In 2018, more than half the adults in Oklahoma, Mississippi, Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, and South Dakota could be obese. That's just one of many alarming projections in a study released last week by Kenneth Thorpe, chair of Emory University's Department of Health Policy and Management, and it comes, appropriately, as Congress is grappling with how to best reform a healthcare system that is becoming wildly and unsustainably expensive.
EDITORIAL: Food 'insecurity'
Las Vegas Review Journal | November 25, 2009
"Food is so readily available that, on the very day that the USDA issued its report, health policy expert Kenneth Thorpe of Emory University in Atlanta reported that, if present trends continue, 43 percent of Americans will be obese by 2018," Mr. Lane reports.
Prevention is Not Only Good Health Policy, It's Good Economic Policy
Health Care Blog | November 25, 2009
Health reform opens the door to making true progress on prevention. On the other side of the door lies better health for our entire population - and a healthier, more vibrant economy. To get there, we must embrace policies that make it easier for patients to actively prevent and manage disease - as well as those that encourage health care providers to collaborate on care of chronically ill patients and take steps towards paying for outcomes and not just volume of services.
Is Congress Serious About Fighting Chronic Diseases?
Roll Call | November 23, 2009
Chronic conditions account for an estimated 75 percent of the nation’s $2 trillion annual medical expenses, and two-thirds of the increase in health care spending can be attributed to unhealthy behaviors, especially obesity.
On that score, a new study by Emory University health expert Ken Thorpe showed that incidence of obesity has risen from 12 percent of the U.S. adult population in 1989 to at least 27 percent in 2008 and, at the present rate of overeating, will rise to 43 percent in 2018, or perhaps even 48 percent.
Obesity rates in CT to rise, become more costly
Hartford Business | November 23, 2009
Obesity rates in Connecticut will reach 33.6 percent by 2018, causing associated health care costs to surpass $2 million for the entire state and $1,052 per person, according to a new study released today.
The study was based on research by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease and is the first report ever to project what the U.S. and each state will be spending five and 10 years from now on health care costs directly related to obesity.
Increasing obesity will drive up healthcare costs in Delaware, study asserts
Sussex Countian | November 23, 2009
“The Future Cost of Obesity” predicts that obesity rates will reach 44.7 percent in Delaware in 10 years and associated health care costs will surpass $975 million for the entire state and $1,366 per person.
In 2008, 32.7 percent of Delawareans were obese, which compares to one-third of all Americans who are obese. According to the study, if obesity rates in Delaware remained at 2008 levels, residents in the state could expect to save $785 per person in health spending during the next 10 years.
The Health-Care Buffet
Wall Street Journal | November 20, 2009
Obesity is defined as having a body-mass-index (BMI) of 30 or greater. For example, a person who is 5'8 and weighs 200 pounds has a BMI of 30 and would be considered obese. According to the study's author and the executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, Kenneth Thorpe, 43% of American adults will be considered obese by 2018 if current trends continue. That's up from 34% today. Mr. Thorpe notes that obesity is the fastest growing health condition in this country and a huge impediment to bending the health-care cost curve.
Study: Costs of obesity-related care to quadruple by 2018
Medill News Service | November 20, 2009
Spending to treat the health effects of obesity, $86 billion last year, will quadruple in the next decade, and almost half of U.S. adults will be obese by 2018, according to the annual America's Health Rankings study.
Doctors who participated in the study warned that if the trends continue and obesity rates keep rising, spending on the health effects of obesity - defined as being 20 percent or more above an individual's recommended weight - will grow to $344 billion by 2018.
South Carolina: Fat Is Getting More Expensive
FitnessNews.com | November 20, 2009
We already knew that South Carolina was among the fattest states in America, but how much is all of that extra weight costing us? According to a new report by our friends at the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, within the next decade 48.1% of South Carolinians will be obese, which means our state will spend $5.3 billion annually - or $1,500 per person - fighting obesity-related ailments.
With a third of Pennsylvanians obese, Emory economist warns of future costs
Philadelphia Business Journal | November 20, 2009
A report released this week, based on research by Emory University health-care economist Ken Thorpe, says increasing obesity rates in Pennsylvania — and across the country — will, not surprisingly, result in dramatically higher health-care spending for states and individuals.
The study was commissioned by UnitedHealth Foundation, Partnership for Prevention, and American Public Health Association. It is the first study to estimate obesity prevalence and costs at the state and national level 10 years from now.
Are Americans really 'food insecure'?
Washington Post Post Partisan Blog | November 19, 2009
In fact, on the very day that the USDA issued its report, Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of the department of health policy and management at Emory University in Atlanta, released a survey showing that, if present trends continue, 43 percent of Americans will be obese by 2018.
Our ever-expanding problem
HeraldNet | November 19, 2009
Health-care crunch
Columbus Dispatch | November 19, 2009
"The guys who offer coverage complain about that all the time," said Kenneth Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University in Atlanta. "Employers who offer coverage are paying $50 billion a year for firms that do not offer insurance."
Obesity Epidemic
ABC World News Tonight | November 18, 2009
Obesity in Ohio
ABC News | November 18, 2009
In ten years more than half of the adults in Ohio will be overweight. Right now, one-third of adults in Ohio are overweight. In ten years, the partnership to fight chronic disease predicts that will jump to one-half.
As Ohioans get fatter, their wallets will get thinner, national health study say
Examiner | November 18, 2009
According to Kenneth Thorpe of Emory University, the rise of health insurance premiums could rise from $433 in 2008 to $1,877 a year in 2018, even for right-sized adults.
The ranking of states according to health profiles by UHF show Ohio moved from 34 last year to 33 this year. Vermont was first; Mississippi was last.
Study Says 43 Percent Of Americans Could Be Obese By 2018 -- Costing $344 Billion Annually
Kaiser Health News | November 18, 2009
A study has found that, if left unchecked, 43 percent of Americans will be obese by 2018, costing the health care system $344 billion annually. CBS News reports: "The study, sponsored by the United Health Foundation, Partnership for Prevention, and American Public Health Association in conjunction with their annual America's Health Rankings, notes that the states most in danger of a ballooning obesity epidemic are: Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma and South Dakota. Only one state -- Colorado -- will have an obesity rate under 30 percent, according to the projections
Ohioans Obesity Rates To Rise By 2018
Cleveland Fox 8 | November 18, 2009
A new study by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease found that 33.9 percent of Ohioans are currently obese and that number is expected to rise to 50.0 percent by 2018!
"More than one in three children in the state is overweight or obese and more than two out of three adults is overweight or obese so these rankings are not surprising to us," said Ann Nevar, Coordinator for the Center for Child Health and Policy at Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospitals.
Study shows obesity costs
Ironton Tribune | November 18, 2009
This study, “The Future Cost of Obesity: National and State Estimates of the Impact of Obesity on Direct Health Care Expenses,” was conducted by Emory University health care economist Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. It projects that half of Ohioans will be obese by 2018.
Think this doesn't affect you? Think again. This impacts all taxpayers because obesity and health problems related to the condition will surpass $16 billion for the entire state, or $1,800 per person.
OPINION: Miss Florence an example in obesity fight
South Carolina Now | November 18, 2009
The study, sponsored by the United Health Foundation, Partnership for Prevention and American Public Health Association in conjunction with their annual America’s Health Rankings, says spending on obesity will account for 21 percent of all money spent on health care by 2018.
“At a time when Congress is looking for savings in health care, this data confirms what we already knew: obesity is where the money is,” Emory University economist Dr. Ken Thorpe, who conducted the research, said in a press release. “Because obesity is related to the onset of so many other illnesses, stopping the growth of obesity in the U.S. is vital not only to our health — but also to the solvency of our health care system.”
Obesity Will Cost US Healthcare over $300 Billion a Year
Softpedia | November 18, 2009
We hear much talk of the obesity pandemics yet, for many of us, forming a picture of what lays ahead of us is difficult unless specific numbers are also computed. This is precisely the premise of a report drew up by Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of the department of health policy and management at Emory University in Atlanta, and cited by USA Today, which concludes that, if obesity continues to soar as until now, by 2018, it will cost the US healthcare an estimated $344 billion a year.
Health at Every Size
Slog News & Arts | November 18, 2009
While Congress searches for ways to slow the growth of health care spending, a new study suggests that its efforts may be overwhelmed by the surging prevalence of obesity. The report, to be issued Tuesday, projects that if current trends continue 103 million American adults will be considered obese by 2018. That would be 43 percent of adults, compared to 31 percent in 2008, according to the research by Kenneth E. Thorpe of Emory University, an authority on the cost of treating chronic disease.
Group says Ohio's obesity rate will soar in next nine years
Ohio Public Radio | November 18, 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease says if half of Ohio is obese, the costs of health care associated with that would soar to 16 billion dollars, or 18-hundred dollars per person. The group is recommending wellness programs in workplaces, schools and community centers to fight childhood and adult obesity.
Obesity Weighs Down Health Care
CBS News | November 17, 2009
The results are based on research by Dr. Ken Thorpe, a health care economist at Emory University.
"At a time when Congress is looking for savings in health care, this data confirms what we already knew: obesity is where the money is," Thorpe said in a press release. "Because obesity is related to the onset of so many other illnesses, stopping the growth of obesity in the U.S. is vital not only to our health - but also to the solvency of our health care system."
Put the Obesity Epidemic at the Top of the Agenda
Huffington Post | November 17, 2009
Obesity is historically linked to about one third of the increase in domestic health spending since the mid-1980s and is a key factor in the rise in private insurance premiums, Medicare and Medicaid spending. These new findings show there's no question that as a nation, we need to take action - and fast - to control our weight.
Study Projects Increase in Obesity and Its Costs
New York Times Prescriptions Blog | November 17, 2009
The report, to be issued Tuesday, projects that if current trends continue 103 million American adults will be considered obese by 2018. That would be 43 percent of adults, compared to 31 percent in 2008, according to the research by Kenneth E. Thorpe of Emory University, an authority on the cost of treating chronic disease.
Rising obesity will cost U.S. health care $344 billion a year
USA Today | November 17, 2009
"Obesity is going to be a leading driver in rising health-care costs," says Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of the department of health policy and management at Emory University in Atlanta. Thorpe did this special analysis on obesity for America's Health Rankings, the 20th annual assessment of the nation's health on a state-by-state basis.
America's Greatest Health Threat: Obesity
Business Week | November 17, 2009
No matter where you live in America, obesity threatens to unleash a wave of chronic disease in the next few years that will swamp the health-care system and add an economically crippling $344 billion a year to total health spending by 2018. This is the message of the 20th annual survey of the health of all 50 states, undertaken by the nonprofit group America's Health Rankings.
Emory University: Obesity To Cost Colorado $3.2 Billion in 2018
Huffington Post | November 17, 2009
A study released today by Dr. Kenneth Thorpe at Emory University, commissioned by the United Health Foundation, reports that by 2018, Colorado will be the only state where less than 30 percent of adults are overweight. Six states--Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma and South Dakota--are predicted to have populations where non-obese adults would be in the minority.
In a press release, Dr. Thorpe said, "At a time when Congress is looking for savings in health care, this data confirms what we already knew: obesity is where the money is. Because obesity is related to the onset of so many other illnesses, stopping the growth of obesity in the U.S. is vital not only to our health - but also to the solvency of our health care system."
Waiting On The Senate
Kaiser Health News Blog Watch | November 17, 2009
Academic Kenneth Thorpe writes on Huffington Post that stopping obesity should be “at the top of the agenda.” Thorpe, who’s been beating the chronic disease drum for awhile, points to a new study that finds 43% of the U.S. population will be consider obese by 2018.
Report: Half Of Ohioans Will Be Obese By 2018
Ohio News Network | November 17, 2009
She said the report by Emory University's Kenneth Thorpe is a realistic prediction, but with exercise and a well-balanced diet, we can fight fate and fat.
"Fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains and lean meats. And portion control and just not getting out of hand where you're just eating all day long, grazing," said Adkins.
More than a thousand people come to The Good Samaritan Weight Management Center to lose weight each year. Patients learn skills like how to exercise and eat healthy.
On a scale of 1 to 50, we're only a fat #14
Houston Chronicle | November 17, 2009
If obesity levels continue to surge as projected, Texans will spend more than $23.2 billion on obesity-linked health care in 2018, or about $1,255 per adult. The overall cost of obesity to the U.S. is $344 billion, the study found.
“We've had an explosion of (obesity-related) disease, which is a key driver of rising health care costs,” said Ken Thorpe, professor of health policy at Emory University and a contributing author of the America's Health Rankings report.
If Texas' obesity rate would begin to level off now, residents would spend 12 percent less on health care in 2018 than if obesity continues to grow at its current pace, Thorpe said.
National health rankings show Golden State checks in at 23rd
San Francisco Busines Times | November 17, 2009
A supplemental report commissioned by the United Health Foundation and written by Kenneth Thorpe, an Emory University professor and executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, predicts that “left unchecked” obesity will add about $344 billion to the nation’s health care tab by 2018 and account for 21 percent of all health care spending.
In California, if obesity rates continue to rise at their current levels, the condition is projected to cost $40.69 billion in the Golden State alone by 2010, or nearly $1,350 per adult resident, in state health care spending, according to the reports.
Study predicts more than half of Ohio's adults will be obese by 2018
Cleveland Plain Dealer | November 17, 2009
Ohio's rate of obesity is expected to be one of the highest in the nation, with only a handful of states at over 50 percent. The national average for obese adults is expected to be 43 percent in 2018, according to research by Kenneth Thorpe of Emory University, who projected the future costs of treating chronic disease attributable to obesity.
"A key driver in health care spending is obesity and chronic health care conditions," Thorpe said. Obesity is linked to a host of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, osteoarthritis and several forms of cancer.
Half of adult Ohioans could be obese by 2018, report says
MedCity News | November 17, 2009
The report, “The Future Costs of Obesity,” was written by Kenneth Thrope, an Emory University professor of health policy. It was commissioned by UnitedHealth Foundation, Partnership for Prevention and American Public Health Association.
According to Thrope’s projections, only Oklahoma, at $1,906, would spend more per adult than Ohio on obesity-related health issues by 2018. Colorado, with an obesity rate currently at 24 percent that’s expected to rise to 30 percent by 2018, would spend the least in 2018, at $864 per adult.
Obesity could cost billions
News Radio Cleveland | November 17, 2009
Dr. Ken Thorpe, National Executive Director with the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, projects that by 2018, health care costs related to obesity will surpass $16 billion.
In 2008, 34% of Ohioans were obese, compared to a third of all Americans who are obese. If rates were to remain at that 2008 level, Dr. Thorpe says residents of Ohio could expect to save more than $110 per person in health spending over the next 10 years.
New Study Projects Ohio's Obesity Rate Could Reach 50 Percent
Marietta Register | November 17, 2009
A new report released today based on research by Emory University Health Care Economist Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD), shows increasing obesity rates in Ohio and across the country will result in higher health care spending for states and individuals. The study, which was commissioned by UnitedHealth Foundation, Partnership for Prevention, and American Public Health Association in conjunction with their annual America’s Health Rankings report, is the first to estimate obesity prevalence and costs at the state and national level 10 years from now.
Report: More Ohioans, Kentuckians Will Be Obese
Kentucky Post | November 17, 2009
In fewer than 10 years, more than half of Ohioans and Kentuckians will be obese, according to a new study released on Tuesday.
The report projects that by 2018, 50.9 percent of Ohioans will be obese, compared with 33.9 percent now.
In Kentucky, 51.2 percent are projected to be obese in 2018, compared with 34.8 percent now.
The study was conducted by Emory University in Atlanta. It's based on current increases in obesity rates. Along with health effects, it will also mean taxpayers will be forking out a lot more money to cover obesity-related illnesses.
Obesity Is Going to Cost Us
Portfolio.com | November 17, 2009
The findings from Emory University health care economist Ken Thorpe confirm what business groups have been saying this year: Obesity is an issue that needs to be curbed if health care inflation is going to be kept under control. Thorpe, the executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, suggests a number of remedies, including more employer wellness programs and education.
Study projects 42 percent Wash. obesity rate by 2018
SeattlePI.com | November 17, 2009
Slim down, Washington. A new study projects that 41.6 percent of state residents will be obese by 2018. And that's going to cost us.
The study, based on research by Emory University health care economist Ken Thorpe of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, projects that health care costs associated with rising obesity rates in the state will surpass $7.2 billion, or $1,333 per person.
Study: Half SC population obese by 2018
MidlandsConnect.com | November 17, 2009
The findings by Emory University Health Care Economist Dr. Ken Thorpe, estimate more than 48 percent of South Carolinians will be clinically obese by 2018. In 2008, 35.6 percent of state residents were obese.
Thorpe estimates increased obesity rates will result in higher health care spending for state government and individual citizens. Obsesity-related health care costs are expected to rise to $1,505 per person in 2018.
Md. State Which Could Be Plagued By Obesity
WJZ.com | November 17, 2009
"Obesity and chronic disease [are] the leading drivers of rising health care costs," said Kenneth Thorpe, a health economist from Emory University.
Right now America spends $79 billion a year on obesity-related problems, like heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.
A new study by Emory University projects by 2018 obesity will cost $344 billion dollars a year, accounting for 21% of all money spent on health care.
Healthy Difference on 'Today's THV at 5': Ark. Health Rankings
TodaysTHV.com | November 17, 2009
The United States spends more per capita than any other nation on health care, including $1.8 trillion in medical costs associated with chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer, which can be linked to these national risk factors.
Obesity in Ohio hits 50% mark by 2018
Washington Examiner | November 17, 2009
A new study, conducted by Kenneth E. Thorpe of Emory University and released on Tuesday, November 17, points to a disturbing result for the long-term health of many Ohioans. More than half of the adults in Ohio are projected to be in the obese category by the end of 2018, a sharp increase from the 34% obesity rate among Ohio adults that we currently see. With Columbus already listed as the 18th fattest city in America, this epidemic can only make matters worse in our city.
Bills take obesity fight into Ohio schools
Columbus Dispatch | November 17, 2009
Ohio's children are fat and getting fatter. The problem has reached such alarming proportions that a new, powerful coalition of businesses and health-care advocates is pushing for statewide standards designed to make Ohio students healthier.
A study by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease found that Ohio's obesity rates could eclipse 50 percent by 2018, with associated health-care costs surpassing $16 billion that year.
Rates of obesity expected to rise, along with associated health-care costs, study says
Mlive.com | November 17, 2009
The report, titled "The Future Costs of Obesity: National and State Estimates on the Impact of Obesity on Direct Health Care Expenses," was based on research by Kenneth E. Thorpe of Emory University, who is also the executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. His research predicts 103 million adults, or 43 percent of the adult population, would qualify as obese by 2018, according to the New York Times. Comparing this percentage to the proportion of obese adults in 2008 -- 31 percent -- is quite staggering.
Obesity study grim for Ohio, Ky.
Cincinnati News | November 17, 2009
If America doesn't get its weight problem under control, more than half the adults in Ohio, Kentucky and three other states will be obese by 2018, according to a report released today.
The report, written by Kenneth Thorpe, a researcher at Emory University in Atlanta, projects that by 2018, 51.2 percent of Kentucky adults and 50.9 percent of Ohio adults will be obese by then if the current rate continues.
In 2008, the percentage of obese adults in Kentucky and Ohio was 34.8 percent and 33.9 percent, respectively.
Ohioans predicted to be "fuller" within ten years
News Talk Radio WHIO | November 17, 2009
A new study says half of adult Ohioans will be obese in just ten years. And those extra pounds will mean extra health care costs. Nearly half of those costs are publicly funded. A group of lawmakers are introducing a bill today calling for more physical education and better nutition for K-12 schools in Ohio. The new study was conducted by Kenneth Thorpe of Emory University. He also leads the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
New study projects costs of obese Ohioans
WTVN | November 17, 2009
The study is the first report ever to project what the U.S. and each state will be spending five and 10 years from now on health care costs directly related to obesity. Dr. Ken Thorpe, National Executive Director with the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, projects that by 2018, health care costs related to obesity will surpass $16 billion.
Study Predicts Half of Ohioans Obese in 2018
Ohio Hospital Association | November 17, 2009
A report released this week by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) shows Ohio’s obesity rate could reach 50 percent by 2018. It also projected associated health care costs will surpass $16 billion for Ohio and $1,800 per person. This is the first study to project what the U.S. and each state will be spending five and 10 years from now on health care costs directly related to obesity. In 2008, nearly one-third of all Ohioans, and all Americans, were obese.
Arkansas 40th among states in new health ranking report
Arkansas News | November 17, 2009
Results of the study by the United Health Foundation, the American Public Health Association and Partnership for Prevention, showed the state’s obesity rate continues to be a problem. The obesity rate has risen 16.3 percentage points since 1990 to 29.5 percent this year, ranking the state 41st nationally.
The overall rate of smoking, on the other hand, has dropped 9 percentage points since 1990 to 22.3 percent this year, but the state still ranks 43rd nationally.
Study: 40% of U.S. May Be Obese by 2018
CBS News | November 17, 2009
The results are based on research by Dr. Ken Thorpe, a health care economist at Emory University.
"At a time when Congress is looking for savings in health care, this data confirms what we already knew: obesity is where the money is," Thorpe said in a press release. "Because obesity is related to the onset of so many other illnesses, stopping the growth of obesity in the U.S. is vital not only to our health - but also to the solvency of our health care system."
By 2018, half of Ohio’s adults may be obese
Dayton Daily News | November 16, 2009
In 10 years, half of adult Ohioans are expected to be obese, according to a new study to be released Tuesday, Nov. 17.
And as Ohioans’ girths grow, so does the cost of health care related to all those extra pounds.
If Ohio's obesity rate hits the projected 50.9 percent by 2018, it’ll cost $1,877 per adult in additional health care costs in their lifetimes, according to the findings by Kenneth Thorpe of Emory University, who heads the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
First we have to end the status quo of health care
Progressive Pulse | November 16, 2009
Thorpe worked on the Clinton health care reform attempt. He said obesity contributes to health care costs. He stressed prevention as an important part of health care reform. He also talked about the concept of a "medical home" a primary provider who coordinates all the care for a patient with many chronic conditions. Instead of the current fee for service system where the patient sees many different specialist and no one coordinates medications or compliance. He talked about the importance of preventative screenings with no copays.
PFCD Pushes Prevention into Health Care Debate
Palmetto Scoop | November 12, 2009
While many politicians and pundits in Washington are squabbling over reforms to the insurance industry, one group is working to make sure that the topic of prevention plays an equal role in the health care debate.
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD), a national and state-based coalition that seeks to educate the public on the number one cause of death, disability, and rising health care costs in the U.S., is leading the fight to create a conversion about chronic disease prevention as members of Congress consider sweeping health care reform legislation.
How to Control Rising Health Care Costs
New York Times | November 11, 2009
With the House’s passage of a health care bill and the Senate legislation possibly moving to the floor for debate next week, many analysts are saying that neither bill goes far enough to slow rising health care costs - an issue that President Obama has made central to his reform agenda...Two unavoidable facts stand in the way as Democrats continue to rework their health-care reform bills. First, these bills deliver only half a loaf - they expand health insurance coverage, but do virtually nothing to control the health care costs.
Opinion: Falling Far Short of Reform
New York Times | November 10, 2009
Certainly, a bill that can’t pass Congress won’t help anyone. But I think it’s important to step back and understand precisely what health experts mean when they argue for reforming the delivery system. It is not simply about bending the curve, or slowing the growth, of Medicare’s projected spending. It’s also about preventing thousands of needless deaths from hospital infections. It’s about making sure you get the best cancer treatment, even when that treatment is not the most profitable one. It’s about keeping health costs from denying most families a decent pay increase, as has happened in recent years.
Rosalynn Carter Talks with BHC at 25th Annual Symposium on Mental Health Policy
Behavioral Health Central | November 9, 2009
Keynote speaker and national health policy expert Dr. Kenneth Thorpe of the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University spoke on "Important Issues We’re Not Hearing About in Healthcare Reform." Dr. Thorpe addressed the need to modernize the infrastructure of healthcare delivery with one that focuses on chronic disease management, preventive medicine, moving away from fee-for-service payment systems to bundling for better integration, improved care coordination, treatment for co-morbidities (such as obesity), and sifting from a - our presently fragmented system to an integrated model that treats the whole person. Dr. Thorpe called for payment reform, and evidence-based care with a focus on outcomes analysis.
Letter To the Editor: Preventive Myth-Busting
Washington Times | November 8, 2009
$100 billion to $300 billion is lost every year because people don’t follow their doctors’ orders - suggesting there is great opportunity for realizing savings through an investment in programs to coordinate care and help patients follow through on their prescribed treatments.
Prevention is not a magic potion and shouldn’t be leveraged as a political miracle. But it is a necessary and integral part of comprehensive reform to our health care system that, if done right, promises to deliver better value per dollar spent.
The Debate Over Selling Insurance Across State Lines
Kaiser Health News | November 8, 2009
"It always sounds appealing to offer more choice," said Kenneth Thorpe, an Emory University health policy expert and a Health and Human Services official in the Clinton administration. "But if you do look at it more closely, it does raise issues of regulation."
Daily Kos
November 6, 2009
Mental Health Policy Experts Ken Thorpe and Thomas Bornemann: Health Insurance Reform is Not Healthcare Reform
Behavioral Health Central | November 3, 2009
Where we thought we were going to have a little bit more discussion was on health reform, which was on innovating and changing the way we do prevention, the way that we actually manage and work with patients who have multiple chronic healthcare conditions, including mental disorders. That was really a fundamental promise of where most of us thought we were going to be a year ago, and so it’s in the House legislation and in the Senate legislation some of these restructuring that we can talk about, but in as minor little pilot. So they decided really not to do health reform anywhere for people with mental illness or people that have other kinds of chronic healthcare conditions and instead of just focused on and set their attention on doing the health insurance reforms.
Most Effective Stress Relievers
Forbes | November 3, 2009
A study conducted last year by the Emory Institute for Advanced Policy Solutions found that firms that focus on improving employee health through worksite health promotion programs showed that the savings are greater than the cost. The study reported that Johnson & Johnson's program, for example, reduced health risks such as high cholesterol levels, smoking and high blood pressure, and saved the company up to $8.8 million annually.
"We found that the design of some of these programs have been found not only to reduce medical costs, but more immediately increase productivity," says Ken Thorpe, professor of health policy at Emory University. We know the designs of these programs can produce return on investment of up to five to one.
Opinion: Scoppe: We’re in the game; let’s not blow it
The State | November 3, 2009
For much of the past decade, South Carolina has been on a frightful economic slide. It wasn't so noticeable when the national economy was roaring ahead at dizzying speeds and our leaky little boat was being carried along by the rising tide, simply not moving as fast as everyone else's. But when the recession hit everyone in the gut and then kept punching, it became painfully clear that we have serious problems that other states don't.
Low wages. High unemployment. Too many people in prison. Too few in college. Subpar schools we'd rather fight over than fix. Low birth-weight babies. High infant mortality. More than our share of chronic disease. Less than our share of access to the routine treatment that saves lives.
Johnson: Food should be part of health debate
Athens Banner-Herald |
October 28, 2009
Consider these facts: Twenty-five percent of Medicare's budget is spent on caring for obese patients, according to a 2006 report in the policy journal Health Affairs by economists Kenneth Thorpe and David Howard. Of the $2.5 trillion we are spending annually on health care, nearly $150 billion goes toward treating obesity. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health predict that by 2015, 41 percent of Americans will be obese...As deliberations on major health care reforms continue, we no longer can ignore how the obesity crisis and lack of access to healthy food affect soaring medical costs. While U.S. health spending is of paramount concern, we also need to concentrate on improving our nation's physical condition. If we don't, we still will be on our way toward breaking the bank.
Public option: danger or deal?
Columbus Dispatch |
October 28, 2009
"There's no question that (the public option), having that available, is tremendous security for people who lose their insurance or their jobs or don't have a health plan offered to them," said Kenneth Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University in Atlanta and a former health official in the Clinton administration.
But Thorpe said the public option the Senate is considering "won't be a robust one, it won't be available to everybody, and its impact on health costs will be limited.
CNN
October 28, 2009
Letter - Affordable health care
Echo Press |
October 28, 2009
Preventive care and access to evidence-based interventions for people with all forms of chronic conditions must be addressed. We strongly believe that in order to reduce costs chronic diseases must be considered. As a member of The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, we join other health organizations to urge our elected officials to take this into consideration when working on the health reform bill.
Letter to the Editor: Prevention Power
San Francisco Chronicle |
October 26, 2009
Nearly half of all Americans have at least one chronic disease (e.g., heart disease, obesity, asthma), and those diseases account for more than 75 cents of every dollar we spend on health care in this country. So, shouldn't we do all we can to control these costs and increase well-being?
Our SilverSneakers program and others like it are more than just a "free gym membership," as they provide older adults critical social programming as well as the ability to maintain better habits and manage chronic conditions - all within a senior-friendly environment.
Ten Things to Look for in Health Care Reform
Mackinac Center for Public Policy |
October 26, 2009
Fifty percent of the nation's health care costs are attributable to lifestyle, such as smoking, alcohol abuse, improper diet, lack of exercise, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Lesson: Reform must include incentives for changing behavior.
Roughly 75 percent of all health care spending is associated with a small number of patients with one or more chronic conditions, according to Emory University's Ken Thorpe. Lesson: Reform must work for the sick as well as the healthy.
Health Reform Turnaround
CNN |
October 23, 2009
I think we need to make sure we get the bill passed. I think what’s important is to make sure we don’t lose sight of the big picture, which is getting more Americans coverage and moving to universal coverage and targeting some of the other issues driving health care spending - rising rates of chronic disease and an explosion of chronic illnesses like diabetes and high blood pressure. We need to come back and figure out more effective preventive ways to address those issues as well.
Fox Business
October 21, 2009
Growing obesity epidemic is raising health care costs
Houston Chronicle |
October 21, 2009
Recent headlines tell the story of a growing epidemic in America. In August, it was reported that people who are 80 or more pounds overweight live three to 12 fewer years than people who are normal weight, defined as between 18.5 and 25 on the body mass index scale. According to an article published in Health Affairs, one third of the rise in health care costs since 1987 is due to the rise in obesity. It is clear that obesity is taking its toll on our nation's physical and financial well-being, and unless we act, our national waistline and debt will expand exponentially.
On Point
National Public Radio |
October 20, 2009
If we first look at the numbers, we can then talk about options. Between 1960 and 1990, the share of adults who were clinically obese didn’t change. Really starting in the late 1980s to today, it has doubled to 34 percent from 17 percent. What we know about that doubling is that one-third of the growth in health care spending between 1987 and the early 1990s is directly attributable to the doubling of obesity. The explosion of diabetes, hypertension, bad cholesterol, pulmonary disease, asthma, back problems - all are directly linked to the explosion of obesity across all age cohorts.
Opinion: Ervolina: Say yes to health reform
The State |
October 19, 2009
An estimated 130 million Americans suffer from chronic disease and cost our nation nearly $20.8 billion each year. Despite the fact that these diseases are largely preventable with ongoing care and lifestyle improvements, they still stand as the leading cause of death and disability in our nation. This is due in large part to the fact that our health care system does not provide access to the preventive care or wellness resources necessary to curb the costly and devastating outcomes of chronic disease.
An organization called Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease is harnessing and disseminating the energy of those who are just as fed up with the health care system as I am. It has launched a Web site called "Say Yes to Health Reform," which chronicles, via online streaming video, the personal accounts of local citizens who are ready to call it quits on the current system in favor of one that actually works.
Curbing costs falls to wayside in health-reform push
Denver Post |
October 18, 2009
It's a simple idea with years of studies and data that show it works: Teams of nurses, nutritionists and community health workers that coordinate care of elderly patients with chronic disease can dramatically reduce hospital admissions and cut costs.
But a $30 billion program to set up what are known as community health teams in all 50 states is nowhere to be found in the thousands of pages of draft health reform legislation - even though data show it would save three to four times that in lower Medicare costs.
"The dilemma was that the committees were at a point where they were basically throwing everything overboard as fast as they could to get the bills down under $1 trillion," said Ken Thorpe, an Emory University professor who had discussed the teams program with lawmakers and their staffs over several months.
Ten Things to Look for in Health Care Reform
Gwinnett Gazette |
October 16, 2009
Fifty percent of the nation's health care costs are attributable to lifestyle, such as smoking, alcohol abuse, improper diet, lack of exercise, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Lesson: Reform must include incentives for changing behavior.
Roughly 75 percent of all health care spending is associated with a small number of patients with one or more chronic conditions, according to Emory University's Ken Thorpe. Lesson: Reform must work for the sick as well as the healthy.
Community Mercy Health Partners working for fairer system
Springfield News Sun |
October 14, 2009
Chronic health conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes, account for seven out of every 10 deaths in America. Not surprisingly, 75 percent of all U.S. health care dollars is spent on chronic diseases. Although the United States continues to have the highest per capita health care spending among industrialized countries, these higher expenditures do not necessarily prolong lives. According to the 2009 World Fact Book, the average life expectancy in the U.S. ranks 50th in the world, behind nations such as Japan, Canada, France and Spain...The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease reports that only 56 percent of chronically ill patients receive the recommended preventive health care services. Nationally, we need to change how we deal with chronic illness; focus on health promotion and preventive care is paramount. The creation of "medical homes" for patients is a significant development.
A Business Lesson for Health Care Reform
Huffington Post |
October 14, 2009
The closest thing to a silver bullet to improving efficiency in health care delivery is to focus on disease prevention and management. This requires incentives to control risk factors like smoking and lack of exercise, and to support a more holistic notion of health care delivery. Rather than waiting for people to get sick before paying for their health care, we need to make more up-front expenditures to prevent down-the-line costs.
Vt. health reform: manage chronically ill patients
Associated Press |
October 11, 2009
The pilot program begun in 2003 aims to reach patients with chronic conditions, keep them healthier and, ultimately, save money by heading off expensive hospitalizations and procedures. Already, emergency room visits are down.
Almost 85 percent of Vermonters ages 65 and over have one chronic condition - such as diabetes, asthma or cardiovascular disease - and many have more than one. Treating chronic conditions accounts for 78 percent of health care spending in Vermont and 88 percent of all prescriptions. Experts say those figures are similar across the country.
PFCD releases the updated comparison of chronic care provisions contained within health reform bill
Medical News |
October 9, 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) today released an updated comparison of chronic care provisions contained within health reform legislation to reflect the amended Senate Finance Committee proposal. The amended "Chairman's Mark" includes numerous provisions to prevent and manage chronic disease, the top cost driver in health care, as do the two other major pieces of health reform legislation under consideration in Congress.
Chairman, Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee: Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa)
Politico |
October 9, 2009
Harkin put prevention and wellness on the radar screen in Congress. Long before the issue came into vogue in the current health care debate, Harkin pushed for greater recognition that prevention policies were a health care necessity, not a luxury. For years, he has talked up fitness, railed against the food industry for marketing fast food to children, touted healthful eating and raised the profile of childhood obesity.
"He was the guy who was there when it wasn't popular and it was lonely," said Kenneth Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Getting the drop on diabetes
Market Watch |
October 6, 2009
Lawmakers nationally are debating whether preventive care is cost-effective when applied on a broad scale, but a YMCA program targeted at people diagnosed with prediabetes is proving that the risk of developing this serious chronic condition can be reduced without breaking the bank.
The YMCA hopes to launch the program, currently being tested in a second pilot in Louisville, Ky., nationwide within two years.
Creating the Virtual Integrated Delivery System
Health Affairs |
October 5, 2009
Preventing and more effectively managing chronic illness are critical national health priorities. Patients with chronic disease currently account for three-quarters of overall health spending. Multiple morbidities are common: More than half of Medicare beneficiaries are treated for five or more chronic conditions yearly. Nine chronic ailments account for nearly 60% of the recent rise in Medicare spending - conditions typically treated with prescription drug therapy and managed chiefly by patients at home and in outpatient settings. Despite significant health care outlays, though, chronically ill patients receive just 55% of clinically recommended services, and that gap in care may explain a nontrivial portion of preventable morbidity and premature mortality.
The $1 trillion question
Market Watch |
October 5, 2009
"We've gone from $1.6 trillion to $774 billion, and now we're moving up toward something that looks like a $900 billion package, which is what I think we'll end up with," said Ken Thorpe, chair of the health policy and management department at Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health in Atlanta.
The Congressional Budget Office, which estimates projected costs of legislation, can't capture potential savings from improvements in primary care, chronic-care management and care coordination, Cutler said. But using "every tool in the basket" in combination is more likely to deliver savings than introducing them at separate times.
How health care overhaul could change Medicare
Associated Press |
October 5, 2009
Free preventive services would be more common in Medicare under the congressional plans. Medicare would pay 100 percent for mammograms, diabetes classes and other preventive services. The Senate bill would include a free annual wellness exam too.
"It starts to change the nature of the relationship from one where you go to the doctor when you're feeling sick to one that's more focused on proactive prevention," said Ken Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Trust for America’s Health’s daily update
October 5, 2009
True health reform begins right here
Macon
Telegraph |
October 4, 2009
Obese adults are far more likely to suffer from heart disease, hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes and some forms of cancer than non-obese adults, and those conditions, of course, come with huge human and economic price tags. The human costs are easy enough to see, including limited productivity, shortened life spans and diminished quality of life.
In a recent article in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Dr. Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of Department of Health Policy and Management at Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health, pegged reducing obesity as a critical factor in controlling our health-care costs.
He reported that obesity is estimated to be responsible for nearly a third of the rise in inflation-adjusted health-care spending between 1987 and 2006, or about $220 billion.
Fox Business
October 2, 2009
Fox and Friends
October 2, 2009
Health Care Friday
Daily Kos |
October 2, 2009
RWJF Daily News Digest: Health Reform
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation |
October 2, 2009
All Sides with Ann Fisher
WOSU |
October 1, 2009
Video Postcards Ask Congress to Emphasize "Health" in Health Reform
Huffington Post |
October 1, 2009
In the midst of the current Washington-centric debate on health care, the public feels its voice is not being heard - and that Congressional leaders need to be reminded about what they want from reform. That's why Pavel Chec, a registered nurse from Minneapolis, MN, and more than one hundred other Americans have sent video "postcards" to members of Congress, as part of "Say 'Yes' to Health Reform" - a web-based campaign organized by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease...
Why chronic disease? Because it is the #1 cause of death and disability in the U.S., and the leading driver of rising health care costs. In fact, 75 percent of our health spending in the U.S - $1.6 trillion annually, or the equivalent of our entire national deficit this year - is linked to the treatment of patients with chronic illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, asthma and cancer.
Wellness At What Price?
National Journal Health Care Blog | September 30, 2009
As in most debates, especially those that aim to make significant changes in policy, balance is a key to success, and that could not be more true than in answering the question of how best to change individual behavior from unhealthy to healthy through wellness programs.
There is a long line of corporate programs that are making a difference in the lives of their employees including Johnson & Johnson, Pitney Bowes, Caterpillar and yes Safeway.Using incentives and rewards, these companies and many more are improving the health of their employees by helping them quit smoking, lose weight, exercise more and better managing disease.The key to success is the employer providing incentives and rewards to their employees to participate in these wellness programs.
Latest Lie: ‘Death Panels By Proxy’
TIME | September 27, 2009
Today, the easiest course of medical intervention is to prescribe treatment plans that deal with the effects of the disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, etc., rather than spending time with patients to help motivate them to take control of their health and manage their own diseases through lifestyle changes. Only when patients begin to understand that they must be the focal point of any intervention to constrain or even reverse the course of expensive chronic illness and, ultimately, produce savings, will we have made progress.
Ken Thorpe on CNN
CNN | September 26, 2009
We need to return to the basics for health reform
Atlanta Journal Constitution | September 23, 2009
We've lost sight of what reform was supposed to be about: lowering cost, improving quality and increasing coverage.
It's not too late to return to that conversation. In fact, the basic questions that were driving health reform then are more relevant now than ever: Where do we spend our money, and how do we control health care costs?
The root of spending starts in our nation's poor health. Three-quarters of what we spend on health care in this country - $1.65 trillion annually, the same amount as our deficit - is linked to patients that have chronic health care conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure and abnormal cholesterol.
Health centers want to see health reform
The Daily Reflector | September 22, 2009
“We support the principles of access, quality and affordability and believe that access to quality health care is the right of every American," the letter states. "At the same time, we want to assure that reform occurs in a way that maintains and strengthens the unique role of academic health centers in the American health care system."
Letter: Health care reform must include prevention of chronic diseases
Journal Gazette (IN) | September 22, 2009
Preventing chronic disease may not be the only answer to reforming our national health care system, but it must be a central part of the solution. It makes good fiscal sense and, more importantly, would improve the quality of life for millions of Americans. Chronic diseases account for seven out of every 10 deaths in the U.S. and 75 percent of all health care spending. A 2008 American Diabetes Association study showed the total costs of diagnosed diabetes in the United States to be $174 billion. In Indiana, that translates to more than $3 billion a year.
Wiener: Disease management first step to health reform
Springfield News Sun (OH) | September 21, 2009
Chronic illnesses, such as diabetes and heart disease, are the most costly to Americans both financially and in the number of lives lost each year, Community Mercy Health Partners President Mark Wiener told Rotarians on Monday, Sept. 21.
That phenomenon, which accounts for 70 percent of all deaths and disabilities in the country annually, is what must be addressed in discussions about health care reform, Weiner said during the Rotary's weekly meeting held at Casey's Restaurant. "Forty-five percent of people (in the U.S.) have at least one chronic disease."
Uninsured take a toll on all North Texans
Dallas Morning News | September 21, 2009
Across Texas, private sector workers this year paid $1,800 more in premiums per family policy, and $630 more per individual plan, to help pay for care of the uninsured, according to the Center for American Progress, a liberal-leaning Washington think tank, updating an earlier study by Democratic health care economist Kenneth Thorpe.
When it comes to health care bill, who pays what?
Chicago Tribune | September 21, 2009
It is all a question of balancing," said Kenneth Thorpe, a health care economist at Emory University in Atlanta who has advised congressional Democrats working on health care bills. Think of the three friends as consumers, businesses and the government, the three major groups that pay for health care in America. The check is the nation's health care tab, which now tops $2.5 trillion a year. Consumers, businesses and government are all hurting, battered by arguably the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression and years of living beyond their means.
Medical malpractice costs take spotlight
Indianapolis Star | September 20, 2009
About 60 percent of the money doctors and hospitals pay for malpractice insurance is spent not on compensating victims, but on legal fees and other adjudication costs, according to Ken Thorpe, a health policy expert at Emory University who worked on the Clinton administration's failed health-care overhaul. "We can do this much less expensively to reduce the cost of liability insurance," Thorpe said.
Experts: Penny per ounce soda tax to fight obesity, health costs
USA Today | September 19, 2009
"The politics of health reform are too delicate right now to provoke an attack from the sugar and beverage industries, said Kenneth Thorpe, a health policy researcher at Emory University.
"They're at such a fragile place, introducing anything new and big like that into the mold is not likely to happen," said Thorpe, who served as a federal health policy official under President Bill Clinton.
Former insurance exec responds to Obama plan with ideas of his own
Insurance and Financial Advisor | September 18, 2009
There are chronic illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, arthritis and related conditions such as obesity that account for more than 75% of our nation's healthcare spending (The Hill, op-ed by Christine Ferguson and Ken Thorpe, August 3,2009). An emphasis on disease management, outcome-based reimbursement, and financial incentives to require greater personal responsibility will have a significant impact on cost, quality of care and most importantly outcomes.
Week 14: Baucus Releases Bill, HHS Announces New Grants
Med Page Today | September 18, 2009
The pilot programs are a great starting point to gather information on medical liability reform, said Kenneth Thorpe, PhD, chair of health policy at Emory University, in an interview with MedPage Today.
"It gives the states the opportunity to experiment in ways to try and reduce the costs of malpractice premiums," Thorpe said. "We know that about 60% of what physicians pay in their premiums goes to administer the system - to assign who's at fault and who's not at fault."
Confusing Insurance Jargon Prompts Call For Reform
Kaiser Health News | September 18, 2009
Dr. Kenneth Thorpe, an Emory University health policy professor who is advising congressional Democrats on health reform, says legislation should require standardized plan information and establish a limited number of standard benefit packages so people are able to make better-informed choices.
The major reform bills would establish health insurance exchanges allowing Americans to select from a menu of plans. The goal, Thorpe said, is "having more standardized product offerings and making it easier to compare across plans, apples to apples.
Attacks on Baucus health bill signal intact reform effort
Washington Post | September 17, 2009
In virtually every instance, industries facing new fees or budget cuts will be rewarded with additional revenue from legislation that could cover 30 million more people, said Emory University professor and Clinton administration official Ken Thorpe. Under Baucus' bill, businesses such as hospitals, drugmakers and insurers face $93 billion in new fees in the next decade.
Medicare to Fund 'Medical Home' Model
Wall Street Journal | September 17, 2009
The Obama administration said Medicare will help fund state pilot projects that use primary-care doctors and teams of coordinators to manage patient care and reduce costs.
Kenneth Thorpe, a former health official in the Clinton administration who helped design the Vermont program, said it works because it allows physicians in small practices to tap into community resources and extend care to patient homes, hospitals and other settings.
From Finance Chief, a Bill That May Weather the Blows
Wall Street Journal | September 17, 2009
In virtually every instance, industries facing new fees or budget cuts would be rewarded with additional revenue from legislation that could cover 30 million more people, said Kenneth E. Thorpe, an Emory University professor and Clinton administration official. Under the Baucus bill, businesses such as hospitals, device manufacturers, drugmakers and insurers would face $93 billion in new fees over the next decade. "They'll get much more than that in new money out of this bill," he said.
Rhetoric aside, Baucus' plan preserves a fragile coalition
Winston-Salem Journal |
September 17, 2009
On the surface, it appears that no one is happy with Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont. - and that may be the best news President Obama has had in months.
In virtually every instance, industries facing new fees or budget cuts will be rewarded with additional revenue from legislation that could cover 30 million more people, said Ken Thorpe, a professor at Emory University and a former official in Clinton administration. Under the Baucus bill, such businesses as hospitals, device manufacturers, drug-makers and insurers face $93 billion in new fees over the next 10 years.
Fight Obesity? Add Sales Tax to Soda Tab
The Associated Press |
September 16, 2009
In a bid to ramp up the public health battle against obesity, a group of nutrition and economics experts are pushing for a tax of 1 cent on every of ounce of sodas and other sweetened beverages...The politics of health reform are too delicate right now to provoke an attack from the sugar and beverage industries, said Kenneth Thorpe, a health policy researcher at Emory University.
Living In A 'Medical Home'
Kaiser Health News | September 11, 2009
Physicians have always wanted to follow up with their patients, "but they don't have the time or resources," says Ken Thorpe, chairman of the department of health policy and management at Emory University and executive director of the Partnership to Prevent Chronic Disease, a coalition that focuses on the economic impact of chronic disease. Thorpe has worked for the state as a consultant on health care overhaul efforts.
Good Health Practices Can Cut Business Costs
Burlington County Times | September 11, 2009
We Have the Power to Change Our Weight
Newsweek Web Exclusive | September 10, 2009
Obesity is a national health crisis, one that - quite literally - weighs on us all. It costs lives. It costs dollars. And in the context of our current health-reform debate in Washington, it's time we took action, as a nation and as individuals, to address this cost.
Obesity accounts for nearly 10 percent of what the U.S. spends annually on health care and is linked to about one third of the increase in domestic health spending since the mid-1980s. It is a huge cost driver in Medicare and Medicaid - so even if you or your family members are not obese, you, like the rest of us, are paying for this crisis. Were obesity at 1987 levels, Medicare spending would be $40 billion per year lower than it was in 2006.
An Examination Of Medicare Cost And Quality Issues
Kaiser Health News | September 9, 2009
In a second article, USA Today reports on the cost of chronic conditions: "Nearly half of Americans have a chronic condition, and 75% of the $2.6 trillion spent annually on health care goes to treat patients with long-term health problems, says Kenneth Thorpe, a professor at Atlanta's Emory University and head of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease." In addition, ninety-five percent of Medicare spending is linked to a chronic disease, according to the article.
Obama to detail health care vision
WZZM | September 9, 2009
On the other hand, says Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of the Department of Health Policy and Management at Emory University, "it's got to be simple, it's got to be believable and compelling, and it's got to be powerful."
Obama to detail health care vision
USA Today | September 9, 2009
On the other hand, says Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of the Department of Health Policy and Management at Emory University, "it's got to be simple, it's got to be believable and compelling, and it's got to be powerful."
Chronic conditions crank up health costs
USA Today | September 9, 2009
Nearly half of Americans have a chronic condition, and 75% of the $2.6 trillion spent annually on health care goes to treat patients with long-term health problems, says Kenneth Thorpe, a professor at Atlanta's Emory University and head of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. In the Medicare program, which pays for Harris' care because of his kidney failure, 95% of spending is linked to a chronic disease.
Health Reform Should Including Diabetes War
Roll Call | September 9, 2009
Conservatives will surely scream "nanny state" at such moves, but the fact is, obesity costs - as much as 27 percent of recent increases in national health spending, according to health analyst Kenneth Thorpe.
Beyond combating obesity, there's a need for better diabetes screening in government health programs. Medicaid and Medicare ought to adopt the kind of intensive disease-management techniques that many insurance plans employ.
Health Reform: A Government Takeover?
Ethiopian Review | September 9, 2009
"Anything to demonize health reform is something opponents have been doing for decades," says Ken Thorpe, an Emory University health policy expert. "Most people don’t understand what’s in the legislation. There’s a lot of misinformation."
Opinion: Big Food vs. Big Insurance
New York Times | September 9, 2009
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, three-quarters of health care spending now goes to treat "preventable chronic diseases." Not all of these diseases are linked to diet - there's smoking, for instance - but many, if not most, of them are.
We're spending $147 billion to treat obesity, $116 billion to treat diabetes, and hundreds of billions more to treat cardiovascular disease and the many types of cancer that have been linked to the so-called Western diet. One recent study estimated that 30 percent of the increase in health care spending over the past 20 years could be attributed to the soaring rate of obesity, a condition that now accounts for nearly a tenth of all spending on health care.
What Needs to Be Done
Huffington Post | September 7, 2009
The answer that tops the list is prevention. Americans are literally sick of a health care system that doesn't improve health, but instead waits until we get sick before it springs into action. That's why policies that will reorient our system to emphasize prevention is an idea that ranks at the top of what Americans want in health reform - well above ideas that get a lot more attention from politicians and the media. In fact, according to a recent Trust for America's Health survey, Americans rated prevention as the top priority in health reform, above providing tax credits to small businesses and prohibiting health insurers from denying coverage based on health status.
Health care reform: bipartisan or bust
Politico | September 7, 2009
Cost and inflation within the industry pose a real and long-term threat to our nation's economy. So do chronic diseases such as cancer and diabetes. According to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, 75 percent of all health care spending in the United States involves the treatment of chronic disease, yet we spend less than one percent of total health care spending on prevention.
Overhaul Math Falters on Variables
CQ Weekly | September 7, 2009
Many health cost experts suggest that the pilot programs now in the House legislation and a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee draft bill don't go nearly far enough down the path of efficiency. "Current proposals stop well short of the level of reform needed to move the system to one that actively promotes health and links payment to quality of care," said a report released last month by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Obama Ready to Stress Areas of Health Agreement
CQ Politics | September 6, 2009
"It's hard to get everything on your wish list passed in one fell swoop," said Ken Thorpe, chair of the department of health policy at Emory University and a senior official in the Clinton administration during its unsuccessful push for a health care overhaul in the early 1990s. "They could decide to pass something, then come back later and try to improve on it."
CNN American Morning
CNN | September 5, 2009
Sources: White House May be Drafting Own Health Care Legislation
WBKO.com | September 5, 2009
"I think the president does have to step up and take ownership of the issue right now. This is a critical time in this debate," said Kenneth Thorpe, a professor with the Robert W. Woodruff Center.
Should It Stay or Should It Go?
Kaiser Health News | September 4, 2009
Rather than focus on the public plan as being the "holy grail," panelists at the Alliance for Health Reform event said Congress should focus on the components in health reform that have bipartisan support. "We all agree that we want our health care system to move toward universal coverage," said panelist Ken Thorpe, with Emory University who used to work for the Clinton administration during the health care reform push in the early 90s.
Tough fall decisions loom for President Obama
Politico | September 1, 2009
"If there's a way to refocus attention on the overarching goals, that's what he's got to do," said Ken Thorpe, co-director of the Center on Health Outcomes and Quality at Emory University in Atlanta. "Eighty-five percent of the population does have health insurance, and there's a lot in this proposal for them."
Cost-Projection Techniques May Understate Impact Of Chronic Disease Initiatives
Healthcare Finance News | September 1, 2009
"For many chronic illnesses, and in the case of diabetes in particular, complications from the disease may not show up for many years," said co-author Michael O'Grady, a senior fellow at NORC in Bethesda, Md. and principal of O'Grady Health Policy, LLC. "Thus, cost estimates covering only 10 years may capture the up-front costs of prevention and disease management efforts but not the long-term health and economic benefits of avoiding future complications."
Disease Management: Not Just for the Clinical Setting, Must Also be Part of Health Care Reform
Ohio Academy of Family Physicians | Fall 2009
Amidst the debate around health care reform, Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) has been encouraging policymakers to focus on what is truly needed to improve health care quality and achieve cost savings. We believe chronic disease prevention and management are the keys to successful health care reform.
Prevention is key to lowering health care costs
Press of Atlantic City | August 31, 2009
Despite Krauthammer's suggestion otherwise, prevention has been a core part of the administration's health reform agenda since the beginning - and for good reason. The fact is that without a strong effort to increase prevention and manage disease more effectively, our chances of stemming the crisis of chronic illness in the nation and making health care more affordable for all Americans, are slim to none.
Everyone benefits from preventive medicine
Columbus Dispatch | August 29, 2009
Krauthammer suggests costs will increase through prevention as everyone is screened for diseases that only a few would get in the first place. He fails, however, to recognize that prevention includes many different types of interventions that are often targeted at those most at risk for developing chronic conditions. No one is suggesting that every American be screened for diabetes, just those who are most at risk.
Removing Costs Can Spark Prevention
Health Leaders Magazine | August 2009
In New Jersey alone, David Knowlton, President and CEO of the New Jersey Care Quality Institute and board member of HealthWell, says preventable chronic disease costs $7.5 billion annually. One way to spark a wellness movement is by reducing cost barriers and communicating better with individuals about prevention and wellness.
Ohio Groups Unite Behind Essential Element in Health Reform
Daily Business News | August 25, 2009
Representatives from business, labor, health provider and public health groups gathered today to remind Congress that only through prevention and management of chronic disease will we realize long-term cost savings and health promotion, when it comes to health reform legislation.
While they may differ fundamentally on a number of health reform-related issues, they all agree that chronic diseases, which include heart disease, diabetes, obesity, asthma, cancer, hypertension and depression, and account for 75 percent of all health care spending nationally, must be addressed for any health reform measure to be successful. The groups represented today are among the more than 100 organizations that make up the Ohio chapter of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD).
Letters: Money aside, prevention saves lives - especially children's
Press of Atlantic City | August 25, 2009
It seemed so out of character for Krauthammer, a medical doctor, to be writing so vehemently against the idea of prevention. I am not in a position to debate the monetary costs of preventative medicine. However, as a pediatrician, I am well prepared to address the physical devastation the lack of attention to prevention causes. I am not talking about $500 defensive-medical measures but rather efforts that clearly make a difference in a large segment of our society.
Primary Care Key Component of Health Care Reform
AAFP | August 25, 2009
"For the first time, physician practices in Medicare would have the ability to not only write a care plan but to make sure it is fully executed by having an interdisciplinary team work with them," says Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease and executive director of the Emory Institute for Advanced Policy Solutions in Atlanta.
Richter: Prevention key to health care reform
The State | August 25, 2009
One component is essential to transforming our ailing health care system, and therefore is the key concept that must be part of any agreement. That component is prevention.
Focusing on prevention will ensure that whatever money we put into the system will return not only to our economy in the form of healthier citizens needing fewer costly treatments, but to our homes and to our families, where health care assumes a value far beyond any monetary concern.
Grow better carrots
Modern Healthcare | August 24, 2009
The debate in Washington has focused on cost and on issues such as whether to have a public plan, whether employers should pay a penalty if they do not provide health benefits for their employees, and other important issues. But what has gotten lost in the discussion is what needs to be done to improve the affordability of care.
Right now we have a "sick care" system in this country. What we need is a true healthcare system. The good news is that by changing our focus we can rein in out-of-control costs. A system that is based on chronic disease prevention, management and care coordination can also help to inject our economy with a much needed jump-start.
Let’s take responsibility for our own health care
Nashua Telegraph | August 24, 2009
Our nation is experiencing a major health-care crisis with a lack of affordable health care and, worse, the health of our citizens is declining dramatically due to preventable chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, depression and asthma.
We must take responsibility for these issues as citizens. Chronic diseases have a devastating impact on our health, jobs, families and economy.
Concentrate on chronic care
North Jersey | August 23, 2009
Almost everyone agrees that affordable, accessible health care is a goal worth the fight. How we get there is where opinions diverge. But there is one critical component to health care reform upon which most rational policymakers agree: Providing incentives for the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases will not only save us money, but also improve our health. It is truly one of the few "no-brainers" sitting at the health care reform table.
If done right, the prevention piece of health care reform can provide cost savings needed to expand coverage to the 40 million to 50 million Americans who now do without. As chairmen of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease in New Jersey, we have spent the last year or so talking to members of Congress and their staffs as well as the public about how to go about providing those incentives in the form of legislation.
Krauthammer misses mark on preventive care
Asbury Park Press | August 23, 2009
Krauthammer claims preventive medical care does not save money, but he fails to recognize that prevention includes many different types of interventions along the spectrum of health that are often targeted to those most at-risk for developing chronic conditions and, more importantly, the management of those who already suffer from chronic disease. No one is suggesting that every American be screened for diabetes, just those who are most at-risk.
Rep. Wilson discusses health care with advocates
News and Sentinel | August 20, 2009
Looking to find a "common sense" solution to universal health care, U.S. Rep. Charlie Wilson, D-Ohio, met Wednesday at his Marietta office with reform advocates.
Wednesday's meeting with Wilson included members of Voices for Ohio's Children, Washington/Morgan Community Action, Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Ohio Consumers for Health Coverage, Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease and Nationwide Children's Hospital.
Rep seeks 'common sense' on health care reforms
Marietta Times | August 20, 2009
Looking to find a "common sense" solution to universal health care, U.S. Rep, Charlie Wilson, D-Ohio, met Wednesday at his Marietta office with several reform advocates.
Wilson said he believes in the need for every American to be covered either by private insurance or a "public option." He said he hopes to get a bill to President Obama's desk to be signed into law by the end of the year.
LTE: The Real Benefits of Prevention
Washington Post | August 19, 2009
Unfortunately, Charles Krauthammer's Aug. 14 op-ed column, "The Great 'Prevention' Myth," perpetuated more myths than it debunked.
The recent Congressional Budget Office letter to which Mr. Krauthammer referred focuses solely on screening and diagnostic testing, known as secondary prevention. While early detection is cost-effective for some diseases, it is not designed to save money.
Dispute Widens on Merits of Health Test
Boston Globe | August 17, 2009
Some specialists interviewed this week said the CBO analysis is misleading. They said the agency looked only at the cost of certain disease screenings, many of which are designed to improve quality of life and were not expected to save money, but not at the full financial benefit of disease-prevention programs that do save large sums of money.
For example, programs aimed at curtailing obesity and diabetes can be cost-effective, according to Kenneth E. Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University. He cited a study in which people who were screened and counseled for obesity lost a modest amount of weight and significantly cut their chances of having diabetes, thus saving many dollars in treatment that might have otherwise been necessary.
CBO: Ounce of Prevention Isn’t Worth Pound of Cure
CQ Healthbeat | August 11, 2009
During a press briefing Tuesday, Thorpe said "the CBO focuses on one type of prevention, which is trying to detect disease through screenings. And some of those types of disease screenings can actually reduce costs, as in the case of colorectal cancer. And a lot of it is really not designed to reduce cost, it’s designed to get people medical intervention earlier," he said. "So the intent of disease detection is not to save money, it’s sort of a straw man."
"If you look at other types of prevention, which the CBO did not address, the major type of prevention that is designed to save money is primary prevention - that is interventions to reduce the share of adults that are obese, to reduce the prevalence of diabetes." There are "randomized trials nationally that show that aggressive lifestyle intervention programs appropriately structured do save money, and they do reduce disease burden."
Bolder Action Needed to Bend the Cost Curve, Coalition Says
CQ Healthbeat | August 11, 2009
A new report by a coalition pushing for better preventive care says the congressional health overhaul effort is missing the mark when it comes to managing chronic disease and isn’t doing enough to bend the health spending curve as a result.
"To 'bend the spending curve' we need comprehensive reform of the payment and delivery systems, creating a system that truly incentivizes high quality care through prevention, care coordination, and other efforts," added Thorpe, a health policy professor at Emory University, during a telephone press briefing Tuesday.
Chronic disease prevention and management: How the health reform bills measure up, and how medical home models can help
Health Blawg | August 11, 2009
Ken Thorpe's Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease released a report today providing a side-by-side comparison of leading health reform bills' approaches to chronic disease prevention and management.
Since chronic disease accounts for 75% of our health care spend, it is reasonable to focus our collective energy on improving prevention and management of chronic conditions. One of the best approaches to date is the medical home model, and a number of different approaches to implementing this model from around the country were presented at the recent White House roundtable.
Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease Urges Congress to Focus Health Reform Effort and Target Chronic Diseases
Ohio Academy of Family Physicians | August 11, 2009
Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) is calling on Congress to use the coming weeks to reevaluate health reform legislation and ensure that it focuses on the greatest opportunity for real cost savings and health promotion: preventing and better managing chronic illnesses.
An ounce of prevention can generate tons of cost savings
NJ Biz | August 10, 2009
Contrariness seems to have become a fact of modern life. And so, I am never surprised when I hear an opposing viewpoint. But sometimes, those views are harmful to public discourse.
That seems to be the case with the current debate in Washington on health reform, particularly as it pertains to chronic disease prevention and the savings it can produce, especially for Medicaid and Medicare. A recent spate of articles and reports have cited a few health economists who, without evidence, are arguing against counting the savings that early detection, proper treatment adherence and preventative measures will bring.
An ounce of prevention for the debate on health care reform
Baltimore Sun | August 6, 2009
The need for a greater emphasis on prevention starts with the glaringly high level of chronic diseases, including heart disease and cancer, affecting people in Maryland and the wider U.S. The vast majority (about 75 percent) of each health dollar goes to treating chronic conditions, and yet heart disease and cancer rate as the top two causes of death in our state and the nation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
What's most frustrating is that these two diseases - along with diabetes, the incidence of which has risen roughly 40 percent in the last 10 years - are largely preventable and stem from lifestyle problems such as obesity and physical inactivity and are made worse by disparities in access to medical care.
First, fix what drives up costs
Toledo Blade | August 6, 2009
As leaders in Congress continue to hammer out health-care reform, Sunday's Blade article "Obesity taking toll on U.S. health care" raises an important question: How can we afford a national health-care system with the rate of obesity rising to epidemic levels?
Obesity often leads to more serious and costly illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension. So it's concerning that only 47 percent of Ohio adults get sufficient physical activity and nearly two-thirds of Ohio adults were deemed to be overweight or obese in 2006. Even more alarming, obesity rates are skyrocketing among our children and teenagers, tripling in the last 20 years.
Health Care Tuesday
Daily Kos | August 4, 2009
Amidst the health care finance reform push, there is also a push to better address preventable chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease and obesity. This organization, the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease wrote a letter to Nancy Pelosi which included support from 270 national and state health groups. Specific policy proposals support health reform and wellness programs.
Will Emphasis on Prevention Bring Health Costs Down?
Kaiser Health News | August 4, 2009
If there is one thing that both parties can agree on in the health overhaul debate, it’s the need to build a health system that promotes prevention rather than just manages disease.
To do that, legislation being debated in Congress requires Medicare and private health insurers to fully cover preventive services such as checkups and screening tests for cancer without any patient co-payments or deductibles. Saying prevention measures can save lives and limit health spending, President Barack Obama has cited such a provision as one of the eight consumer protections he wants in any health overhaul legislation.
Debating prevention's place in healthcare bill
Los Angeles Times | August 3, 2009
As Congress struggles to decide how America should take care of its sick, another controversy is simmering over whether the healthcare legislation should include billions of dollars aimed at keeping people well.
A draft Senate bill would provide up to $10 billion annually for a "prevention and public health investment fund" - a portion of which could be used for infrastructure projects, such as bike paths and farmers markets meant to curb chronic and costly conditions like obesity.
NH Schools are Learning to Offer Healthier Foods
Nashua Telegraph | August 2, 2009
Most are familiar with the rising statistics associated with childhood obesity. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the prevalence of obesity among children ages 6 to 11 more than doubled in the past 20 years, going from 6.5 percent in 1980 to 17.0 percent in 2006. Meanwhile, the rate among adolescents ages 12 to 19 more than tripled, increasing from 5 percent to 17.6 percent.
The Next Health Care System
National Journal | August 1, 2009
Orzag maintains that it would be irresponsible to proceed faster, given the uncertainty inherent in big changes - shifting toward paying providers more for results than for volume, for example. But even some of his allies disagree. Many think that the Democratic bills are advancing these ideas too tepidly for fear of antagonizing providers. "They are small, little incremental steps," frets Kenneth Thorpe, chairman of Emory University's Public Health School. Douglas Holtz-Eakin, John McCain's 2008 campaign policy director, agrees: "They have the right boxes checked...but they don't have the scale." CBO echoed that verdict in its dismissive review of the bills' long-term savings.
We Need to Address Obesity Now, Or Health Reform Will Fail
Roll Call | July 30, 2009
As Congress and the president focus on health reform, reducing the nation's obesity rates must be a top priority.
Health economist Kenneth Thorpe has predicted that if the prevalence of obesity were the same today as in 1987, health care spending would be 10 percent lower per person. That's a savings of $200 billion a year. Those are dollars that could be used for expanded coverage of uninsured Americans.
Hodes Emphasizes Prevention in Health Care Call with Constituents
Now New Hampshire | July 30, 2009
After admitting to struggling with his own weight, Rep. Paul Hodes (NH-02) stressed the importance of "education, awareness, and preventative care" as key pillars of any health care reform package during a Tuesday night tele-town hall with his constituents.
Stakeholders, Lawmakers Push For Care Coordination In Health Reform
Inside Health Policy | July 29, 2009
Stakeholders who had been urging lawmakers to include a strong commitment to funding the coordination of care for people with chronic conditions are expressing frustration that pending health reform bills fail to do so, and are working to get provisions added to the final package. An aide to Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA), who has been promoting an act that would offer incentives to house-call physicians to coordinate the care of the sickest beneficiaries, said he plans to introduce an amendment on the issue during the Energy and Commerce markup.
Ken Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD), in an interview earlier this month noted that Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-MT) had included in his 89-page health reform white paper released in November a "visionary approach" to care coordination. Everyone at that time understood the importance of care coordination, Thorpe said.
Nation studies Western Slope's low-cost, high-quality care
Denver Post | July 29, 2009
Ken Thorpe, an Emory University health care expert who has been helping Democrats craft reform legislation, estimates that creating a robust system of transitional-care teams in communities throughout the country would cost about $25 billion over 10 years while saving a total of $100 billion.
But in their current form, most of the bills call for pilot programs in a small number of communities. Those could take as long as five years to run their course, reducing savings dramatically in comparison to a nationwide program.
Health-Care Co-Op Gaining Support
Fox Business Network | July 29, 2009
If so just what is a medical company? By definition it's a community based organization owned and controlled. By its members which ensure members access to a specified package of what they call efficient and appropriate healthcare services. Such a plan would be good news to those concerned about a government backed option which will only increase government spending. For more on how cops could impact the debate and the bottom line I'm joined by Ken Thorpe, Public Health Professor at Emory University and -- Katz a public health professor and principal lecturer at University of Washington. Gentlemen thank you for being here. Arthur, in layman's terms how can help co op war can give us an example of one that's in existence today.
A simple way to cut health care costs
CrossCut | July 29, 2009
It's common sense (if often overlooked) that making sure people have access to medicines and take them as prescribed - known as "adherence" - is an important part of any health care strategy. As such, it may be an overlooked key to saving money in health-care reform. New research shows that adherence is not only good for the well-being of millions across the country but can help reduce the cost of health care. This simple lesson is one Washington's members of Congress should remember as we head into the national debate about health care reform.
Prevention Efforts May Not Reduce Health Care Costs
National Public Radio | July 28, 2009
While Gould takes issue with the CBO's scoring of the existing House and Senate bills, Ken Thorpe of Emory University takes issue with the bills themselves.
"On the prevention side, at least in the congressional proposals, there is not a coherent, effective prevention strategy really designed to prevent disease in the first place," says Thorpe, who is also executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, another public health umbrella organization.
Thorpe says there are proven ways to use prevention strategies to reduce the incidence of very expensive ailments like obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure. But they need to be more broadly deployed.
Cost of treating obese patients soars to $147 billion
USA Today | July 28, 2009
About 34% of adults - more than 72 million - in the USA were obese in 2006, up from 23% in 1994, according to government data. Two-thirds of people in this county are overweight or obese. Obesity increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes, several types of cancer and other diseases. Kenneth Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University in Atlanta, who has also studied the medical costs of obesity, agrees. "Obesity is the biggest single reason why health-care costs are rising. We can save lives and money through lifestyle interventions."
Vermont could be guide on health care
USA Today | July 28, 2009
Vermont has "one of the most innovative models of prevention...and care coordination in the country," one that could be a guide for Congress as it debates an overhaul to the nation's health care system, says Kenneth Thorpe of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. Covering the uninsured is at the heart of the debate in Washington also as Congress struggles with whether to offer - and how to pay for - health care for more than 46 million in the USA without insurance coverage.The Green Mountain state took a different route. Officials decided they couldn't afford to cover everyone, so they focused on cutting costs and improving care, with the goal of insuring more people. They won over critics in the Legislature and the public by not raising taxes.
Just Rewards? Healthy Workers Might Get Bigger Insurance Breaks
Kaiser Health News | July 28, 2009
Some health advocates are more comfortable with linking financial incentives to other factors, such as refilling prescriptions or monitoring blood sugar on a regular basis, as opposed to meeting a specific fitness target. "Once you get into paying more for specific outcomes, for many people that does cross over the line," said Ken Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a coalition whose members include groups representing patients, health care providers and business and labor.
Slade: Health care reform must focus on prevention, good medicine
The State | July 27, 2009
At the center of change has to be how health care is delivered and not who or how we pay for it. Until we consider changes in the current delivery system, health care will not be more affordable.
Funding an enhanced primary care system with first-dollar reimbursement and a focus on disease prevention, disease management and care coordination will afford us the opportunity to control rising costs and help us to truly reform the delivery system. There is no relationship between people’s need for health care and their ability to pay.
Lobbyists the silver lining in health care storm?
Associated Press | July 26, 2009
"My gut is telling me that something major can pass because all the people who could kill it are still at the table," said Ken Thorpe, chairman of health policy at Emory University in Atlanta. "Everybody has issues with bits and pieces of it, but all these groups want to get something done this year." As a senior official at the Health and Human Services department in the 1990s, Thorpe was deeply involved in the Clinton administration's failed effort.
Preventive care
Star Ledger | July 22, 2009
It is important to mention that true health care reform cannot meet its goal of providing maximum quality care and reducing health care costs without taking into effect the reduction of chronic diseases. There is vast evidence that prevention must be the primary objective (outside of emergency medical care) to not only increase the quality of life through increased positive physiological responses of the human body, but also the natural reduction of overall health care costs. As a result, it is imperative that a true "integrated" approach should not leave Americans without such care. A paradigm of treatments would not only provide correction and maintenance, but also integrate with traditional care.
DOCTOR IS IN: Common sense and science agree - an ounce of prevention works
Atlanta Journal Constitution | July 20, 2009
As Congress and the Obama administration work to hammer out the details of health reform, consumers - and by that I mean everyone who has been, is now or will be a patient, or a taxpayer, or both - should pay close attention to prevention.
Both the House and Senate versions of the draft legislation include important investments in prevention, and President Barack Obama has stressed that prevention must be part of comprehensive health reform.
Cinqueonce: First, manage chronic diseases
The State | July 20, 2009
The key to successful health-care reform is chronic disease prevention and management. And that begins by raising awareness about the impact of conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease.
I have seen first-hand the devastating toll these diseases have on individual health and the state economy. South Carolina has one of the largest chronic disease burdens in the country, with more than 2.1 million cases that cost more than $20.8 billion every year in combined treatment costs and lost productivity.
Wellness Goes to Work
Akron Beacon Journal | July 20, 2009
As a result of those efforts, Anderson said, the organization has seen a decrease in its health insurance premiums in recent years, as well as a 25 percent decrease in large medical bills of $25,000 or more. About 88 percent of large firms with 200 or more employees and 53 percent of smaller companies now offer at least one wellness program, according to the 2008 results of a national annual survey by Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit research group.
Obama's Turning Point
Washington Post | July 19, 2009
On Thursday, just as three House committees that share jurisdiction on health matters were preparing to rush a bill to the floor, CBO Director Douglas Elmendorf told the Democrats that they were about to bust the budget. None of the bills he had seen contain "the sort of fundamental changes that would be necessary to reduce the trajectory of federal health spending by a significant amount."
Ken Thorpe, an academic expert who worked on the Clintons' effort 16 years ago, said, "There is nothing in the current legislation that will reduce private insurance premiums" - and not nearly enough to contain the rising costs of Medicare.
Commentary: Health care reform requires attitude change for all
The News & Observer | July 19, 2009
What has undermined our current health care system isn't a question of private vs. universal coverage. And it's not a question of how many diagnostic tests doctors should be ordering. It's a question of how we approach our health altogether and what we're willing to do to prevent disease in the first place.
Chronic diseases are the leading cause of death and disability in the United States. They account for the vast majority of health spending. In fact, according to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, people with chronic conditions account for 81 percent of hospital admissions; 91 percent of all prescriptions filled; and 76 percent of all physician visits.
CBO: Reform bills won’t ‘bend the curve
Ohio Health Policy Review | July 17, 2009
With CBO scoring playing such a large role in the debate over reform legislation, the nonpartisan Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease has issued a white paper, "Health-Care Cost Projections for Diabetes and other Chronic Diseases: The Current Context and Potential Enhancements" (pdf, 16 pages), that contends that the CBO’s practice of estimates costs out over 10 years may not provide an accurate picture of health care costs, in light of the long-term costs of treatment for diabetes and other chronic diseases.
Following Doctor’s Orders Can Make Difference
Illinois News Gazette | July 16, 2009
In the midst of the health care debate, I would like to draw attention to an increasing problem that directly contributes to the deterioration of patient health and causes significant cost increases. Research shows us that almost one-third of patients stop taking their prescriptions before they are supposed to, and another one-third admit to not even getting the prescription filled in the first place. Estimates of the economic cost of non-adherence run anywhere from $100 billion to $300 billion annually.
Investing in Prevention
Illinois Lake County News Sun | July 16, 2009
Spending on patients with chronic diseases now represents more than 75 percent of total spending on health care in the U.S. Until we get this crisis under control, we will never be able to slow spending or make health care more affordable. Nor we will have a workforce - or an economy - that can perform to its fullest potential. Investing in prevention and disease management will save lives and money now and well into the future. Recognition of the opportunity to achieve the long-term benefits of investment in these areas would provide a positive framework for health policy decisions.
Healthy habits may cut price of insurance
Boston Globe | July 15, 2009
Previous measures aimed at convincing Americans to get in shape and lead healthier lifestyles have had mixed success. While the smoking rate has dropped dramatically in recent decades, the obesity rate has doubled since 1987, according to Ken Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University. If the country could return obesity levels to the 1987 rate, it could save $225 billion per year, going a long way to paying for other measures in the healthcare bill, Thorpe said. “To date, the Congress just has not dealt with this,’’ said Thorpe, who was a senior health policy aide during the Clinton administration.
Letter to the Editor: There is value in prevention
Cleveland Plain Dealer | July 14, 2009
At a time when spending on chronic disease amounts to $1.7 trillion a year - 75 percent of total national health spending - we just cannot afford to stay in our current path. Improving our population’s health has tremendous value that will pay dividends in the future.
Obama begins health care push
USA Today | July 13, 2009
Disagreements over whether to tax employer-sponsored benefits and how much to tax the rich to pay for the plan escalated last week while Obama was overseas.
"The good news is that everybody's still at the table," says Ken Thorpe of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. But "the timeline is tough."
Concern growing that health care reform doing too little to rein in costs
Los Angeles Times | July 13, 2009
What is missing, critics contend, are bolder initiatives in the existing Medicare and Medicaid programs to reward doctors and hospitals that become more efficient -- and cut federal payments to those that do not.
"There are enormous opportunities to save money," said Ken Thorpe, an Emory University healthcare economist who has been advising Democratic lawmakers on the legislation. "What has been proposed is much too tepid."
Letter to the Editor: Preventing Addiction
News and Observer | July 13, 2009
The financial price of addiction is staggering, costing our nation over $400 billion annually. In part due to early onset, addictive disease costs more than the top three killers in the U.S. (heart disease, diabetes and cancer) combined. Last year, addiction cost North Carolina $13.14 billion and Wake County $1.16 billion.
There are evidence-based curriculums for substance abuse prevention. Most are targeted to at-risk middle and high school students. Costs are minimal (approximately $100 per person) and results are good. At SouthLight, Inc., the largest provider of substance abuse services in Wake County, more than 95 percent of participants in our prevention program report a positive experience with the program and over 65 percent show behavioral change.
Adherence will save Health Care dollars
Cincinnati Enquirer | July 12, 2009
Improving adherence among those with chronic illness can reduce overall health care spending. For example, better adherence to diabetes medications would significantly lower total health spending: For every $1 spent on diabetes medications, $7.10 less is spent on other health services.
S.C. obesity rates continue to rise
The Sumter Item | July 12, 2009
According to CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a state-based phone survey that collects health information from approximately 400,000 adults age 18 and older, the proportion of U.S. adults who are obese increased to 26.1 percent in 2008, compared to 25.6 percent in 2007. And the obesity rates in five states was 30 percent or higher.
Awareness
WIS-TV | July 12, 2009
Obese Account for Greatest Jump in Healthcare Spending
ABC News | July 9, 2009
"Obese adults were associated with over half of the growth in health care spending between 2001 and 2006, and that's a remarkable figure," said Ken Thorpe, chair of health policy at Emory University, who was not involved in the study.
"Also, there are more people who are clinically obese . . . so it's really a combination of both" elements that is driving spending, he told MedPage Today.
Dr. Thorpe said that over time, more obese patients are being diagnosed with more chronic health problems, including diabetes, cholesterol, and heart disease, which also drives spending.
Health Reform Must Include Real Reforms
Roll Call | July 7, 2009
Today, despite these trends and facts, the traditional fee-for-service Medicare program pays nothing for the care coordination necessary to address these problems. As a result, Medicare is plagued with high rates of preventable hospital admissions and readmissions; 20 percent of Medicare patients are readmitted to a hospital within 30 days of discharge, most of which are preventable.
So the first task in health care reform should focus on developing new approaches based on proven methods to change behavior, slow the rise in chronic disease and deliver better care coordination. Appropriately designed, these ideas have been shown to reduce rising health care spending.
State leaders call for chronic disease focus
NJBiz.com | July 6, 2009
A group of leaders, which included the presidents of the state’s two largest business associations and former Gov. Jim Florio, called for a focus on addressing chronic disease as part of health care reform.
The New Jersey Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease kicked off its campaign to slow health care spending by focusing on curbing chronic conditions through prevention and early treatment.
State view: Chronic diseases sap U.S. economy
Duleth News Tribune | July 5, 2009
When it comes to the health of Americans, our nation faces a crisis. Billions are spent every year on health care, yet many Americans struggle with their health.
Arthritis is a debilitating disease that affects 48 million people in the United States. The rapid growth of chronic diseases such as arthritis has caused individual health costs to soar, and we at the Arthritis Foundation think those costs are burdening our nation’s health infrastructure.
Spending on patients with one or more chronic diseases now represents more than 75 percent of total spending on health care in the U.S. - and even more in public programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.
Letter to the Editor: What Works
News and Observer | July 4, 2009
Healthy workplace policies are a low-cost, high-impact way to support healthy employees. Creating a tobacco-free worksite greatly increases the chance employees who use tobacco will quit. Couple that with insurance benefits that cover no-cost medication and counseling, and tobacco quit rates double. As the reporter pointed out, this saves employers money.
Companies Start Health & Wellness Programs
NBC4i | July 2, 2009
The skyrocketing costs of health care has forced many companies to look for ways to save.
The Ohio Chapter of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) has urged members of Ohio’s Congressional delegation to learn from the experience of local employers.
In the health-care reform debate, the PFCD advocates for provisions that address the impact of chronic disease.
Greer plant gets handle on preventive health care
Greer Citizen | July 2, 2009
A national organization that works to raise awareness about chronic diseases recognized Mitsubishi Polyester Film of Greer for its integrated health care model that encourages workers to stay healthy and prevent disease.
Tim Ervolina, of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, commended Mitsubishi for cutting healthcare costs and increasing the productivity of workers at the plant last Wednesday.
"We want to create a system that attacks crisis at both ends of the spectrum," Ervolina said.
Politicians can debate over health care coverage all they want, Ervolina said, but the main problem is that 75 percent of health care spending, $1.7 trillion, every year is related to chronic illnesses.
New Jersey Leaders Detail Savings For Health Reform
Medical News Today | July 2, 2009
Saying that the savings from chronic disease prevention and treatment "can fill the funding gap for health care reform," the New Jersey Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) was joined by key state business leaders in urging federal lawmakers to "take the savings and run" with a health care reform bill that works for all Americans.
"The savings are there," said former New Jersey Governor James Florio, Co-Chair of the PFCD effort in New Jersey. "They are real and they should be counted when calculating the cost of any reform bill which includes strong incentives for chronic disease prevention and treatment."
Braley pushes for wellness and prevention in health care reform
KWWL-TV | July 1, 2009
According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, every year Americans spend two trillion dollars on healthcare, 75 percent of that is spent on combating chronic illnesses, such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.
According to Braley, less than five cents of every dollar spent on health care goes toward prevention. He says with a great investment in prevention chronic diseases could be avoided all together.
President Obama Tries to Reform Health Care
WCSE | July 1, 2009
"Certainly a lot of disagreement about how a plan like that can be constructed and whether it should even take place," said Dr. Ken Thorpe, Professor of health policy at Emory University.
The battle comes down to private vs public.
"If you have private insurance you can keep it with the hopes you can pay less."
Q and A: Obama’s Health Plan
WRAL | July 1, 2009
Dr. Ken Thorpe addresses misconceptions about Pres. Obama's proposed health plan.
SJE-Rhombus wins health cost battle
Detroit Lakes Online | July 1, 2009
Recognizing the steps companies are taking to manage skyrocketing health care costs, the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease presented SJE-Rhombus in Detroit Lakes with a “Promising Practices” award Tuesday for making wellness and prevention a key aspect of the company’s strategic business plan.
The national Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease organization is a coalition of more than 110 businesses, labor organizations, employees, health-care companies and faith-based organizations.
U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) and former Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Roger Moe, co-chair of the Minnesota Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, were present to help congratulate SJE-Rhombus in its efforts.
Guest column: Health reform should encourage patients to follow doctors' orders
Des Moines Register | July 1, 2009
One group of people that tends to take a large number of medications is those who have been diagnosed with chronic diseases. Chronic-disease sufferers need proper disease management to live a normal life. Following their health-care professionals' instructions about medications is particularly important. Providing incentives for adherence can greatly help these chronic-disease sufferers to better manage their disease and become healthier, resulting in significant cost savings.
Should VT be a model?
TimesArgus.com | June 30, 2009
Ken Thorpe, the consultant who has worked with lawmakers in Vermont and other states to design those systems and is advocating for them nationally, agreed with Douglas that those efforts will be more significant than the discussion about insurance mechanisms.
There is the potential for saving money by redesigning who pays for health care, but the huge savings are to be found in dealing with obesity (which accounts for 30 percent of the growth in health spending) and chronic diseases (which account for 70 percent of overall spending), Thorpe said.
Detroit Lakes business recognized for wellness program
WDAY AM 970 | June 30, 2009
An area business is being recognized for its fitness, wellness and prevention programs. SJE Rhombus in Detroit Lakes is being given the promising practices award.
SJE Rhombus has an employee based live-wise program that provides fitness and nutritional assistance program. Employees are encouraged to exercise, lose weight, quit smoking and eat better.
Opinion: Corner Office: Bob Franks
NJBiz | June 29, 2009
One way to do that is by focusing on disease prevention and early intervention, with particular focus on chronic disease. Chronic diseases are the leading cause of death and the key driver of health care spending in the United States. In fact, 75 percent of the nation’s overall health care spending goes toward caring for patients with chronic diseases. Studies show that health care costs for people with a chronic disease average $6,032 annually - five times higher than healthy patients.
Letter to the Editor: Prevention is the best way to control health costs
New Haven Register | June 28, 2009
Nearly half (49 percent) of Americans suffer with one or more chronic illnesses, a significant portion of which are caused by substance abuse, including alcohol and tobacco.
An astounding $1.65 trillion is spent annually treating patients with one or more chronic illnesses, most of which are preventable or controllable with proper care and management. As Congress looks to reign in unnecessary health care spending, and reallocate funds toward prevention and wellness, public education around chronic disease and substance abuse is critical.
Recent W.Va. leadership actions promote health correctly
West Virginia Gazetter | June 28, 2009
In addition to making us unhealthy, chronic conditions also inflict serious costs to our health-care system. According to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, 75 percent of West Virginia's health-care spending is attributable to patients with one or more chronic diseases. There is an incredible opportunity to lower costs by addressing the educational and disease-management issues at hand.
Baucus ups pressure on health groups
Politico | June 27, 2009
Programs like disease prevention will save money, but the practices are more recent and have not yet been fully incorporated by the conservative CBO, said Ken Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University, who has worked with policymakers on reform.
So lawmakers are forced to ask industry giants to accept cuts on things like Medicare reimbursement rates, because those are savings that the CBO can “score."
"There will be a lot of hand-wringing and back-channel griping about it, but the bottom line is that they’re doing it. It’s a real difference," said Thorpe, in a reference to the committee’s hunt for CBO-sanctioned savings.
More Attacks on Prevention and Its Role in Health Reform That Make No Sense
Huffington Post | June 26, 2009
Two recent newspaper pieces on prevention by Carla Johnson (Associated Press) and David Harsanyi (Denver Post) repeat some long-standing misperceptions about prevention. Because prevention is central to health reform, it's time to set the record straight.
Both the articles suffer from baby-with-bathwater syndrome, brought on by lumping all kinds of prevention into one big pot. Imprecise language is dangerous, particularly in the realm of policy-making. It leads to fuzzy thinking and that produces bad policy.
Letter to the Editor: Prevention Programs are Worth the Cost
Herald and Review | June 26, 2009
At a time when one in five four-year olds is obese - and younger and younger Americans are developing serious chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer and asthma - we cannot afford to continue on our current path. Spending on chronic diseases amounts to $1.7 trillion a year - that’s 75 percent of total national health spending.
Morning, Drive-Time Interview
WTVN | June 25, 2009
Disease prevention often costs more than it saves
Associated Press | June 25, 2009
While Johnson misinterpreted the type of disease prevention PFCD advocates for, the article did mention several instances where prevention can reduce health costs and improve health outcomes and discusses CBO scoring.
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease wants the budget office to be more generous with its review of prevention, to take a longer time frame and to calculate savings to the private sector in lower absenteeism and higher productivity.
Letter to the Editor: Failure to follow doctors’ orders costly to system
Springfield State Journal Register | June 24, 2009
With health-care costs increasing exponentially and many people struggling to pay for their own health care, a primary focus should be the factors that contribute dramatically to the rising cost of health care. Chronic conditions, many of which are preventable, account for 75 percent of all health-care spending. In the midst of the health-care debate we would like to draw your attention to an increasing problem that directly contributes to the deterioration of patient health, which creates a domino-type effect causing a significant increase in the cost of health care.
Letter to the Editor: Don’t ignore prevention in health care
Ottawa Daily Times | June 24, 2009
Spending on patients with chronic diseases now represents more than 75 percent of total spending on health care in the U.S. Investing in prevention and disease management will save lives and money now and well into the future.
Nightline Health Care Twitter
ABC online | June 24, 2009
Prior to the town hall discussion, PFCD Executive Director Ken Thorpe appeared on ABC online and discussed the impact of President Obama’s remarks.
Health reform isn't brain surgery
NJ.com | June 24, 2009
As the New Jersey chairman of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, however, I know with certainty that the money we need to implement and sustain health care reform is there for the taking. We simply need to convince the number-crunchers in Washington of that fact.
Right now we have a "sick care" system in this country. What we need is a true health care system. The good news is that by changing our focus we can rein in out-of-control costs. A system that is based on chronic disease prevention, management and care coordination will yield both better health care results and billions in savings.
Evaluating Care Coordination Among Medicare Beneficiaries
JAMA | June 24, 2009
In understanding the study of the effects of care coordination on hospitalization, quality of care, and health care expenditures among Medicare beneficiaries by Dr Peikes and colleagues,1 it is important to examine the purpose of demonstration programs during the evaluation process. These practical studies are performed to determine which programs work and which do not. Medicare should examine and learn from the failures and even more closely evaluate the successes of the demonstration programs to determine which practices could - and should - be implemented among larger populations. From the demonstration programs described in this study, the medical community learned that the programs with the greatest focus on care coordination reduced costs and patient hospital stays. It indicated that directing efforts toward most-affected populations and establishing healthy lifestyles early in life may be critical to improving the quality of health and the health care system.
State surgeon general talks to children about healthy habits
NWAnews.com | June 24, 2009
Thompson's visit was part of the Arkansas Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease's "Get Active! Get Healthy!" campaign. He said being active will help one remain healthy.
"When you aren't healthy, you get sicker quicker,"he said.
"One of the simplest ways to combat disease is to get healthy," said Ben Thielemier, a representative of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Fox News
Arkansas
| June 23, 2009
ABC News
Arkansas | June 23, 2009
Control Diabetes
Charleston Post and Courier | June 22, 2009
Each year, diabetes, a largely preventable disease, accounts for hundreds of hospitalizations that cost an estimated tens of millions of dollars for the tri-county area alone. About 8 percent of the population in Charleston, Dorchester, and Berkeley counties suffers from diabetes. It is among the top causes of death in our state.
Over time, poorly controlled diabetes can lead to a variety of serious health conditions, including heart disease, stroke, blindness, amputations, kidney disease, and nerve damage.
Special Health Report
TIME Magazine | June 22, 2009
One way to cure illness is with pills and procedures. Another is to not get sick in the first place. The great thing about the latter: it’s cheaper, easier and more likely to save your life. As part of its plan to reform health care, the Obama Administration wants hospitals, doctors and patients across the country to make a serious commitment to prevention. That means ditching bad habits, eating right, exercising and spotting danger signs early.
A User’s Guide To Good Health at Every Age
TIME Magazine | June 22, 2009
"Patients really should be empowered," says Dr. David Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine. "You shouldn't assume that your doctor knows everything he or she should know." So preserving your good health means educating yourself.
Stick to the treatment plan
Quad-City Times | June 21, 2009
Research has shown that nearly 75 percent of patients do not take prescriptions as advised. Some skip doses, stop taking medicine before they use all of it, and others don't fill prescriptions. These decisions can cause serious negative ripple effects. Adherence to directions is especially critical for patients with chronic diseases. The cost of non-adherence has been estimated to be $100 billion to $300 billion every year. This includes costs resulting from avoidable health-care visits and nursing home admissions and preventable deaths.
Scoring on Capitol Hill
Akron Beacon Journal | June 21, 2009
The CBO represents the gold standard for calculating cost. Yet even its work is only as good as its assumptions (as the one evaluation suggested). What deserves ample attention at the budget office is that effective health reform promises savings in the long run, the country investing money upfront to gain an eventual and substantial return.
The Partnership for Chronic Disease has been reinforcing the point with lawmakers. It notes that the treatment of chronic conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease and obesity, consumes 75 percent of $2.2 trillion the country spends on health care each year. Do a better job of treating these conditions, as sound legislation proposes, and the country will reap accelerated savings, in particular, during the period beyond the CBO's 10-year window of assessment.
Reform Health Care Now: We need to practice preventive medicine
Daily Finance | June 20, 2009
Let's look at obesity, which affects half the U.S. population and has become an epidemic, as we've heard many times. In a recent Fox News interview, Ken Thorpe, a professor at the Emory University School of Public Health said that the number of obese people in the U.S. has doubled since 1985, and this has led to a 30 percent increase in health premiums.
Letter: The State Needs More Health Education
The State | June 19, 2009
Chronic disease now stands as the leading cause of death for South Carolinians, costing us billions of dollars and thousands of lives each year. Chronic conditions, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, are among the most prevalent in our state, yet conversely, are also largely preventable diseases. Along with healthy diet and exercise, adherence to medication regimens has been proven to prevent the onset of chronic disease.
Many don't follow the doctor's orders
Chillicothe Gazette | June 19, 2009
The Diabetes Ten City Challenge is a great example of how adherence can make a difference. This successful program worked through employers to incentivize employees and dependents to better manage their diabetes care. Using a team approach of pharmacist coaches, physicians, and community health resources, the results were outstanding. Total health care costs for the participating employers were significantly reduced, as was absenteeism and workers' compensation claims.
Health-Care Cuts Could Shift Costs
Washington Post | June 18, 2009
If Medicare cuts payments to hospitals but the costs of treating patients stay the same, "then you have the potential for cost-shifting," said Kenneth E. Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University. But Obama is trying to implement policies "that would lead to hospitals reducing their expenditures," he said.
American Cancer Society Forum To Address Cancer's Economic Impact On The Workforce
Medical News Today | June 18, 2009
The American Cancer Society will host its inaugural Corporate Impact Conference June 18-19 in Chicago to help large corporate employers diminish the impact of cancer on the workforce and help improve workplace productivity. "Companies Changing the Course of Cancer" is designed to guide businesses in potentially lowering health care costs related to cancer and improving their overall bottom line.
Otis W. Brawley, M.D., the American Cancer Society's chief medical officer, will address the "State of Cancer and its Effect on Companies" during the conference's opening session. Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease Executive Director Kenneth Thorpe, Ph.D., will deliver the conference's keynote address. Dr. Thorpe also serves as professor and chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management at Emory University in Atlanta.
Prevention programs have place in reform
Cedar Rapids Gazette | June 18, 2009
Spending on patients with one or more chronic disease represents more than 75 percent of total health care spending. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control estimates that 80 percent of heart disease and type 2 diabetes and 40 percent of cancers are preventable, so prevention-oriented programs should naturally be a large part of health reform to cut down on costs.
Letter to the Editor: Fighting Chronic Disease
Lake County Journals | June 17, 2009
Investing in prevention and disease management will save lives and money now and well into the future. Recognition of the opportunity to achieve the long-term benefits of investment in these areas would provide a positive framework for health policy decisions. PFCD partners have developed a set of guiding principles, which include three key points that lead to insufficient recognition of the opportunities offered by investments in prevention and disease management.
The 5 Big Health Care Dilemnas
TIME Magazine | June 15, 2009
And a reformed healthcare system would put more emphasis on preventive care and managing such chronic conditions as asthma, heart disease and diabetes that now account for 75 cents out of every medical dollar spent.
Blog: Last Minute Advice for Congress
National Journal.com | June 15, 2009
With the introduction of the co-op idea, Senator Conrad has made a suggestion that may provide an opportunity to move past he hyper partisanship created by the public plan option. However, so far, the co-op discussion has focused on how it should function (member owned, non-profit, an elected board, and return surpluses to member or reinvest them) and not as much on how it would deliver care. And in this debate, reforming the delivery care system is at the center and is the key to reducing costs and improving quality.
Less huffing, more fitness in Meredith's wellness plan
DesMoinesRegister.com | June 14, 2009
Both sides of the still-developing partnership between Meredith and its employees say they couldn't be happier with the health screening process, which is in its third year. The program is part of a nationwide trend that earlier this month saw the Des Moines publishing company receive a "Promising Practices" award from the Iowa Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, the local arm of a national health care reform organization.
Groups Aim to Push Healthcare Policy
Columbus Dispatch | June 14, 2009
If you think fighting chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease is tough, just try taking on the Congressional Budget Office. That's what the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease will be tackling, in part, as it tries to push forward its argument during the titanic health-care-reform battle being joined in Washington this summer and fall.
We have to be smart about reform
Iowa City Press Citizen
| June 13, 2009
Unfortunately, the Congressional Budget Office only shows costs savings within a 10-year time frame and many of the prevention-focused programs do not fit into that time frame for an appropriate cost analysis.
Reforms don't take into account prevention savings
Quad-City Times | June 12, 2009
Our country is taking on a huge task in 2009 and making health care reform a priority. Despite all the money and resources that are spent on health care today, many Americans still are struggling with their health. Obesity, diabetes and heart disease diagnosis continues to grow at an unnerving rate. The rapid growth in these problems is causing individual health costs to soar.
Disease Drives Demand
Huffington Post | June 9, 2009
Most spending in our health care system is associated with patients with established, long-standing medical problems that require ongoing medical maintenance and intervention. Chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer account for 75 percent of health spending in the U.S. - and even higher proportions of spending in Medicare (96%) and Medicaid (83%). These diseases are responsible for two-thirds of the growth in health care spending since 1987.
It's not just a small group of Americans who are chronically ill. Today nearly half of Americans - 130 million people - need care regularly because they have chronic health conditions; many cases of which could be prevented or better managed.
New Lessons from the Old World
TIME Magazine | June 8, 2009
Sudden illness may be what scares most people, but chronic conditions place the greatest strain on health care. About 75% of the U.S.’s $2 trillion annual health-care expenditure goes toward ailments such as heart disease, asthma, diabetes and certain cancers, and the vast majority of that money is spent when those conditions require hospitalization or emergency care.
New CDC director will bring strong stand on health issues
Atlanta Journal Constitution | June 6, 2009
Ken Thorpe, a health policy professor at Emory University, said he believes President Obama tapped Frieden due to his successes in New York City. The president is looking for new ideas that lead to healthier lives and lower health care costs, and Frieden's emphasis on illness prevention is right on track, he said.
"If we're going to (lower health care costs), we need new aggressive, innovative ideas - and some might not be popular," Thorpe said.
Get an Assist to Your Goal From a Healthcare Coach
US News & World Report | June 5, 2009
Some experts think this kind of healthcare coaching might go a long way toward managing the system's ills, too. Approximately 75 percent of the total U.S. healthcare expense - more than $2 trillion in 2006 - is attributable to chronic disease. Yet research has shown that just over half of people with chronic conditions actually get recommended preventive care - aspirin therapy after a heart attack, say. By doing a good job of guiding people like Sakowich, "you keep people out of the hospital and reduce readmission rates," argues Ken Thorpe, a healthcare policy expert who is executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. As the $1 billion earmarked for prevention in February's Recovery Act is spent, Thorpe believes, all manner of programs and businesses will sprout up to help people mind their doctor, quit smoking, get active, lose weight.
Lawmakers consider health delivery system reform
American Medical News | June 1, 2009
With certain chronic diseases on the rise, it is imperative that the health care industry embrace key design features from successful care management models used by such facilities as the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Geisinger Health System in Danville, Pa., Thorpe said. Using these models to launch community-based "health teams" would provide care coordination and prevention using the same tools and approaches employed successfully in larger practices, and it would allow Medicare quickly to replicate these efforts nationally.
Reform CBO's health scoring
ToledoBlade.com | May 30, 2009
Furthermore, the rapid growth in common and costly chronic health conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, and obesity, could cripple our economy.
An ounce of prevention really is worth a pound of cure. Too much is at stake for policymakers to base their decisions on shortsighted budget information.
National Wellness Authority Speaks at Myrtle Beach and Visits Midlands
Columbia Star | May 29, 2009
As part of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, Jones brought his expertise to Still Hopes to discuss his campaign against chronic disease. His warning is the pending rise in health care's percentage of the gross domestic product: now 16 percent and heading towards 22 percent in the near future. Or, put as a continuity, the highest in the world is rising even higher. Most countries in the First World average about half what the U.S. pays in health care as a percentage of GDP.
CBO Offered Creative Ways To Score Prevention, Wellness Savings
Inside Health Policy | May 28, 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) recently weighed in on the issue with the release of "guiding concepts"it wants CBO to follow. Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-MT) is likewise urging CBO to be flexible in its scoring methods, and has sought help from the Obama administration. But White House budget chief (and former CBO head) Peter Orszaz last week said it is difficult to find quantifiable savings linked to prevention and wellness, and urged lawmakers to find "hard scorable savings" in other areas to pay for health reforms.
Policymakers base decisons on shortsighted information
Dayton Daily News | May 28, 2009
It is likely that part of the federal government’s plans for health care reform will include investing in prevention and disease management. And rightly so, as this not only helps to saves lives, but also avoids future health care costs. Unfortunately, many federal health care proposals with potential long-term savings are disregarded because of shortsighted evaluations from the Congressional Budget Office.
Partnership to Battle Chronic Disease with More Awareness
Pine Bluff Commercial | May 27, 2009
The partnership has developed a set of six goals for its different participating groups to promote including increasing exercise, decreasing the number of smokers and improving access to health care screenings for chronic diseases. "We try to generate a lot of awareness and a lot of outreach," he said. "It’s such a big issue." The national partnership started a few years ago, Thielemier said, but was introduced in a statewide Arkansas initiative in March.
Health Care
Columbus Dispatch | May 27, 2009
The fate of health reform may rest on how much a proposed policy will increase, or decrease, federal spending. That's why it is imperative that we consider the long-term impacts of any health reform proposals. Chronic diseases account for 75 percent of the $2 trillion we spend on health care annually. Furthermore, the rapid growth in common and costly chronic health conditions, such as diabetes and heart disease, could cripple our economy.
Chronic diseases: Prevention crucial to aid health care
Harrisburg Patriot News | May 26, 2009
Our health care system is sick. But unlike many illnesses I treat as a family physician in Pennsylvania, there is no pill or procedure that can provide the cure. However, there is one thing we can do that will go a long way toward providing some noticeable relief - prevent chronic diseases.
Congressional Budget Office's scoring methods for evaluating health care costs should be modified to focus on prevention
Cleveland Plain Dealer | May 25, 2009
It is likely that part of the federal government’s plans for health care reform will include investing in prevention and disease management. And rightly so, as this not only helps to saves lives, but also avoids future health care costs. Unfortunately, many federal health care proposals with potential long-term savings are disregarded because of shortsighted evaluations from the Congressional Budget Office.
Getting Healthy, With a Little Help From the Boss
New York Times | May 22, 2009
"If you are an employer who wants to keep providing health care coverage, you have to target employees’ exercise, diet and nutrition habits," says Dr. Kenneth E. Thorpe, chairman of the health policy and management department at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University.
Three-quarters of the money the nation spends on health care is for chronic conditions, Dr. Thorpe pointed out. If companies can get workers to make behavioral changes to control problems like high blood pressure or diabetes, the businesses’ costs typically go down.
A Conversation with Richard Carmona
Columbus Business First | May 22, 2009
We spend $2.2 trillion per year on health costs and 75 cents of each dollar is spent on chronic disease, such as heart disease, asthma, cancer and diabetes. These diseases often are preventable, and frequently manageable through early detection, improved diet, exercise, and treatment therapy. The public must be part of the solution; individuals must do their part to prevent chronic diseases, mainly by addressing obesity. Otherwise, disease and economic burden will mount.
Experts Offer CBO New Formula for Determining Cost of Reform
Washington Post | May 21, 2009
As key lawmakers begin drafting health reform legislation, health advocates are nervously wondering whether the numbers will add up in the eyes of the Congressional Budget Office, the official arbiter of legislative costs and savings. Today, a new paper offers a way to put a thumb on the CBO scale without sacrificing that agency's reputation for analytical rigor.
It's no free lunch, however. After presenting the paper at a breakfast hosted by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, Grady and Capretta said the savings achieved by improving treatment for diabetes is unlikely ever to cover the full cost of the additional testing and procedures. As a means to help cover the cost of overall health reform, Grady said, "it's useless."
Ditch yo-yo diets and change your behavior
Delaware News Journal | May 19, 2009
Obesity is a problem that is plaguing our health care system and society and it must be arrested, especially for our children. According to the Center for Disease Control Overweight rates have been climbing over the past few decades among children. About 9 million (or roughly one in six kids ages 6-19) were overweight in 2004 - more than triple the number of overweight children in 1980. Many chronic diseases could be prevented, delayed, or alleviated, through simple lifestyle changes.
Programs aim to prevent chronic diseases
News-Press.com | May 18, 2009
Policymakers are eyeing chronic disease management and preventive medicine as significant keys to reining in health care costs and reforming the health system. The seven most common chronic diseases cost the U.S. economy more than $1 trillion in treatment and lost productivity. Almost half of Americans suffer from one or more chronic conditions, and chronic diseases kill 1.7 million people in the United States every year. Many of the illnesses are preventable.
New report details devastating toll of chronic conditions on economy, healthcare system
McKnight’s | May 18, 2009
The U.S. spent $1.7 trillion treating patients with chronic conditions in 2007 - the equivalent of 34 million annual salaries of $50,000, according to the second annual Almanac of Chronic Disease, which was released Thursday.
The report comes from the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) a coalition of patients, providers and physicians. Among the group's findings: chronic disease treatments in the U.S. may add up to $150 billion in unnecessary healthcare spending; chronic care treatments are linked to nearly two-thirds of healthcare spending increases since the mid-1980's; chronic disease accounts for 70% of all deaths in the U.S.
Take proven path to quickly contain health-care costs
DesMoinesRegister | May 16, 2009
Could these measures generate substantial savings soon? Yes, according to an analysis that the Coalition commissioned from Kenneth Thorpe, a leading health-care economist who teaches at Emory University - as much as $1.3 trillion in savings over the first decade of implementation. (The Coalition asked him to use projection methods similar to the CBO's).
Reducing Chronic Diseases Critical To Economic Recovery And Health Reform
Medical News Today | May 16, 2009
An obese 70-year-old will spend approximately 20 percent more on health care over their lifetime - nearly $40,000 - than a peer of normal weight, according to the second annual Almanac of Chronic Disease, released today by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD).
The Almanac is a comprehensive resource that outlines the critical role that preventing and reducing chronic diseases can have on health care reform, economic stability and the health of all Americans.
Chronic Disease Prevention Must Be in Health Overhaul, Group Says
CQ HealthBeat | May 15, 2009
Chronic diseases are a major contributor to rising health costs in the United States and should be a key piece of the health care overhaul, health experts said Thursday as they issued the 2009 edition of the Almanac of Chronic Disease.
"We need to address the sad reality that 75 cents of every dollar we spend on health care in our nation is to treat people suffering from a chronic disease," Richard Carmona, a former U.S. surgeon general and chairman of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, said in a statement delivered at a press conference.
CBO Has the Loudest Voice
Philadelphia Inquirer | May 15, 2009
Right now, the CBO is trying to figure out how to score the various health-care reform proposals. In many respects, that is the most important discussion being held in our nation's capital.
A New Jersey group that I chair, the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, has asked the CBO to look at the health-care proposals a little differently.
National Journal Experts Health Care Blog
By Ken Thorpe | May 14, 2009
The pledge by leading health-care groups earlier this week to reduce spending by $2 trillion signifies an enormous change. In the 1990s, when I worked on the Clinton administration’s failed health campaign, the overall mood was negative and skeptical. Now, there is a tremendous sense of momentum. People don't want to give up on the possibility of achieving comprehensive health reform.These meetings have helped keep industry groups engaged, rather than fomenting opposition.
Score one for health care
Times of Trenton | May 14, 2009
A group that I chair in New Jersey - the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) - has asked the Congressional Budget Office to look at the health-care proposals a little differently than the manner with which they are accustomed. CBO makes its cost estimates over the first 10 years following legislation's enactment. For policy changes that improve health, however, the returns on those investments often take more than 10 years to appear.
Cost, Not Coverage, Drive Health-Care Debate
TIME Magazine | May 13, 2009
More emphasis on prevention and wellness: Pure common sense tells you that it's much cheaper not to get sick in the first place. But there is little financial incentive for the health-care industry in that regard. Obama says he intends to change that.
Healthcare groups join Obama at negotiating table
Los Angeles Times | May 12, 2009
"This is just an enormous change," said Ken Thorpe, a health economist at Emory University in Atlanta who worked on the Clinton administration's failed health campaign in the 1990s.
Back then the mood was negative and skeptical, said Thorpe, who is now advising congressional Democrats on healthcare legislation. "Now, there is a tremendous sense of momentum. People don't want to give up."
Chronic diseases fuel health-care costs
Tennessean.com | May 9, 2009
Moreover, chronic diseases cost Americans quite a bit of money. More than 75 cents of every dollar we spend on health care goes toward treating chronic illness, according to the CDC. And that's just the direct cost of treating chronic disease.
Savings from improved health could lower costs of reform
American Medical News | May 8, 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease - a national coalition of hundreds of patient, medical professional, community, business and labor groups - wants CBO to include potential cost savings that could stem from patients' improved health status when it calculates the cost of national health reform legislation. This could help make such legislation more politically feasible by lessening the need for Congress to find new sources of revenue or to cut other spending in order to adopt the legislation under budget restrictions.
State Gets Coalition on Chronic Diseases
Indy Star | May 8, 2009
Leading health-care, business, faith and labor organizations have formed an Indiana coalition to fight and prevent chronic diseases.
The group, part of the national Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, was announced at a news conference Thursday.
Republicans and ObamaCare
Wall Street Journal | May 8, 2009
More broadly, it seeks to reorient financial incentives so that the system is no longer focused, as Mr. Coburn puts it, on "sick care," but on preventing the chronic diseases that eat 75 percent of health expenditures. These incentives would be used to lower costs and discourage insurers from cherry-picking patients. The bill also dives into Medicare and Medicaid reform.
Cure for Health Care Crisis
CNN | May 5, 2009
PFCD Executive Director Ken Thorpe appeared on CNN to give his “90-second Rx” on health care reform as part of CNN’s ongoing themed coverage, “Cure for Health Care Crisis,” where he listed several remedies for the national health care crisis, namely lowering health care costs by managing chronically patients.
Childhood obesity has become a crisis
Greenville Online | May 3, 2009
Chronic disease is the driving force behind rising health-care spending, accounting for more than 75 percent of the nation's annual $2 trillion in health care expenditures. Currently, only 5 percent of health-care spending is funneled to prevention.
Additionally, the indirect costs of obesity (such as missed work days and future earnings losses) have been estimated at $56 billion per year. Children treated for obesity are roughly three times more expensive for the health-care system than children of normal weight.
Working For National Health Care Reform
New Jersey Municipalities | May 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease is a national coalition of patient groups, providers, community organizations, business and labor groups, faith-based organizations and health policy experts that are working to save lives and reduce health costs by addressing the underlying problem in health care - chronic, but preventable, disease. The New Jersey chapter is active and growing.
Making Health-Care Reform Pay for Itself
Time | April 30, 2009
Trying to meet that ambitious goal in such a short time frame may make it hard for lawmakers to make the wisest policy choices. Though advocates say that fixing the health system promises big savings over the long haul, it will take some big, up-front investments - in technology and preventive care, for instance - whose benefits will not begin to take effect for years.
Healthy lifestyle key to controlling costs
Politico | April 30, 2009
As is well-known, comprehensive health care reform comes with a price tag, which will be based on the analysis of the Congressional Budget Office. But will lawmakers have all the information they need on costs? Will they be looking at a complete picture? The answer to these questions is critical to solving the challenge we face.
Chronic disease the focus of PFCD
Stuggart Daily Leader | April 30, 2009
Arkansas has one of the highest rates of chronic illness in the nation. According to the most recent data from the Milken Institute, more than 1.7 million cases of the seven most common chronic diseases were reported in 2003, costing $13.9 billion burden on the economy for treatment costs and lost productivity.
Working hard to make country's health care system better
ZanesvilleTimesRecorder | April 30, 2009
More must now be done to fight the childhood obesity epidemic, which has triggered a frightening spike in weight-related disorders like diabetes, high-blood pressure and heart disease among young people. And the place to start is the schools, where junk foods sold outside the federal meals programs - through snack bars, vending machines and a la carte food lines - has pretty much canceled out the benefits of all those healthy lunches and breakfasts.
Fixing Health Care Won't Be Easy, But It Can Be Done
Roll Call | April 28, 2009
Today, a historic and diverse group of stakeholders are working to find consensus on how to accomplish a shared vision: Bring comprehensive health care coverage to all Americans. The two of us - one a labor leader and the other a representative of pharmaceutical research and biotechnology companies - are but two among many working together to move past talk and into action.
Editorial: Obesity reaches down to youngest years
Greenville News | April 27, 2009
Obesity among children is a real problem, taking a serious toll on health. Children with excess pounds are at risk of diabetes, asthma and hypertension. They're also susceptible to a wide array of injuries, gastrointestinal problems, fatigue, depression, poor self-esteem and academic problems in school.
By taking steps to combat chronic disease now, Americans can trim the U.S. health tab by billions
Cleveland Plain Dealer | April 26, 2009
Every dollar Americans spend on treatment of obesity-related chronic illnesses enlarges a growing pile of wasted money that could be used to modernize health care delivery and discover cures for serious diseases such as cancer and HIV/AIDS. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta estimates that chronic disease now accounts for 75 cents of every dollar spent on health care in this country.
It is our duty to demand affordable health care
Gaffney Ledger | April 22, 2009
Diabetes, heart disease, asthma and obesity — these are the chronic conditions I see every day, and sadly, it has been proven that each of these conditions is largely preventable with access to regular, quality care.
Why then, are so many of our families and friend suffering from these diseases? I believe there is a gap in our country's health care system, one that makes it next to impossible to receive affordable preventative care.
Mass. town takes steps to trim fat (really), health care costs
USA Today | April 21, 2009
According to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, 45% of Americans - 133 million people - suffer from at least one chronic disease such as asthma or hypertension. Because many of the conditions are brought on or exacerbated by obesity, which has doubled nationwide since 1987, experts say they can be prevented or at least better managed.
Chronic Disease: The Missing Link in Health Care Reform
Atlanta Hospital News | April 2009
A number of factors contribute to the health care challenges Americans face today. However, data shows that deficiencies in prevention and effective management of chronic diseases and related complications – conditions such as obesity and associated heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia and cancer– are at the root of many of the greatest problems.
Inglis, Romberger lead forum tackling chronic disease
GoUpstate.com | April 21, 2009
The S.C. Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease hosted its first forum on health care and the impact chronic disease has on the population and economy. The Columbia-based nonprofit plans to hold forums in all congressional districts.
"If you get enough backyard discussions going on, you're going to have a real national movement," said Anthony Quattrone, director of the Partnership.
Thirty-nine percent of South Carolinians have a chronic disease, which includes high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and high cholesterol.
Forums open up debate about health system reform
American Medical News | April 20, 2009
DeParle led the April 8 discussion and asked attendees for opinions. Participants in the Washington, D.C., gathering - including representatives from pharmaceutical companies and health plans - appeared to agree on the need for universal coverage, better preventive care and payment reform, Thorpe said. But they differed on the methods needed to get there.
For chronic diseases, prevention is key
Baltimore Sun | April 20, 2009
Carmona was in Baltimore last week to spread the word about early intervention to stem the rising number of cases of chronic disease, which is the nation's leading causes of death and disability. He chairs the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a coalition of health, business and government groups, and many in Maryland's health care community have just signed on.
AstraZeneca CEO says U.S. needs less ‘sick care’
Daily Record | April 14, 2009
With an aging population, the health care industry has become increasingly synonymous with “sick care.”
That’s what David Brennan, the newly elected board chairman of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, said Tuesday at a Greater Baltimore Committee breakfast and lecture at the Center Club.
Following the event, Brennan and U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona joined state leaders at the National Aquarium in Baltimore to launch the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, which calls for comprehensive health care reform.
Group brings fight against chronic diseases to Maryland
Baltimore Sun | April 14, 2009
A national group that aims to prevent and more effectively treat chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes launched a local chapter Tuesday in Maryland, where the number of people suffering from one or more of the conditions exceeds the national average.
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease is a coalition of patients and provider associations, business and labor organizations and health policy groups that are promoting early intervention to stem the rise in problems that now cause seven in 10 deaths nationwide and cost 75 cents of every health care dollar.
Viewpoint: A new mission to fight chronic disease
Baltimore Sun | April 14, 2009
As 17th surgeon general of the United States, I made every decision based on the knowledge that the strength of our great nation is in the good health of its people. Maryland is one of our nation's leading states when it comes to health research and health care, but it has one of the largest chronic disease burdens in the country: more than 3 million cases and more than $25 billion every year in combined treatment costs and lost productivity. That's why it's so important that a coalition has been formed in Maryland to join 14 other states in the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD).
Group, Obama Focus on Better Chronic Disease Management
NOW! Hampshire | April 13, 2009
The state chapter of a national health care organization is urging Congress and the president to reform America’s health system by tackling the problem of chronic disease.
You may have seen the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease featured on WMUR this weekend as they set about the work of educating the public and the politicians as to the best way to reduce health costs.
Letter: Small Steps in Health Prevention Works Best
The Bemidji Pioneer | April 7, 2009
It is absolutely true that America spends too much on health care, $2.2 trillion, but what is even more telling is that when you break that number down you see that fully 75 cents of every dollar spent on health care is spent on chronic disease. The figure increases for Medicaid and Medicare where 83 cents and 96 cents, respectively, of every dollar are spent on chronic diseases.
North Carolina Joins Health Effort
North Carolina News Network | April 6, 2009
North Carolina is joining in a multi-state effort to save lives and health care dollars. North Carolina will become one of the largest states to join the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease -- a coalition that includes groups from the medical community, labor, business and others.
Partnership executive director Dr. Ken Thorpe says a revolutionary new approach is needed because of the magnitude of the problem. The group is looking at better prevention and treatment strategies. The Centers for Disease Control estimate that cancer, heart disease, asthma, obesity and other diseases claim 1.7 million lives each year and cost the country $1.5 trillion dollars.
Fight obesity, chronic disease for health reform
Seacoastonline.com | April 5, 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease notes that young Americans are suffering from preventable diseases at higher rates and the best way to continually improve health status would be to practice preventative measures. It is important that our nation adopt systems for fitness and execute these plans to ensure a healthier outlook.
Governor Perdue, State Experts Join National Fight Against Chronic Disease
WNCT.com | April 3, 2009
"The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease welcomes North Carolina and its dedicated leadership to the critical discussion of how to better prevent and manage chronic diseases," said Richard H. Carmona, M.D., M.P.H., FACS, 17th Surgeon General of the United States (2002-2006), national chairperson of PFCD, and president of the non-profit Canyon Ranch Institute.
"With seventy-five cents of every health care dollar spent on chronic disease, it is clear that we cannot control health care costs until we contain and defeat the chronic diseases that impact so many individuals and families and place an unsustainable burden on our economy. PFCD’s broad coalition of national partners, joined now by our North Carolina partners, is improving the health, safety, and security of our great nation."
Perdue announces plan to battle chronic illness
News14.com | April 3, 2009
Gov. Bev Perdue announced Friday morning that close to 40 health care organizations in the state will join the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. The groups will work together to help citizens with diseases like Alzheimer's, diabetes and cancer.
Officials hope focus on chronic disease will reduce health care costs
The Daily Reflector | April 3, 2009
North Carolina will not be able to control the soaring cost of health care until it addresses chronic diseases that burden the economy, Gov. Beverly Perdue said Friday at the East Carolina Heart Institute.
To combat these growing health problems, Perdue announced North Carolina will join the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a multi-state coalition of providers, community organizations and health policy experts. The partnership seeks to educate the public about chronic disease, mobilize Americans to call for change in how the country approaches chronic disease and challenge policy makers for better decisions, according to the PFCD Web site.
Young Invincibles
CNN’s House Call with Sanjay Gupta | April 3, 2009
PFCD Executive Director Ken Thorpe’s segment on CNN titled, “Young Invincibles,” appeared on House Call with Sanjay Gupta and was featured on the show’s homepage.
Massachusetts is Not the Only Health Reform Model
Huffington Post | April 2, 2009
Ken Thorpe writes, "As discussion continues on the President's budget and whether the nation can afford to take on health care reform, a number of experts -- and two of the nation's leading newspapers -- have suggested that we look to Massachusetts as the nation's test case. But if we are looking for lessons, there are other "real world" examples that we can consider."
State joins effort to help chronically ill residents
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | April 1, 2009
Dr. Joe Thompson, Arkansas' Surgeon General answers questions Tuesday at a news conference announcing the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. State officials announced the creation of the partnership's new Arkansas chapter in a news conference Tuesday at Harmony Health Clinic.
More than 60 percent of Arkansans, or 1.7 million, have at least one chronic disease, and such diseases cost an estimated $13.9 billion a year in treatment and lost productivity, according to a partnership news release.
Health Care Reform: Vermont style
The Palmetto Scoop | April 1, 2009
In a guest editorial Thursday, Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., the Executive Director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, noted “Vermont’s primary focus was to make health care more affordable and at the same time expand coverage.”
Lawmakers, Witnesses Say Public Health and Prevention Must Be Part of Health Overhaul
CQ Healthbeat News | April 1, 2009
Health care overhaul must emphasize the need for public health and disease prevention programs in addition to health insurance access to be successful, health experts said at a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing.
White House hosts health forum in Greensboro
North Carolina News Network
| Mar. 31, 2009
Dr. Ken Thorpe is the executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease and a former health policy professor from UNC-Chapel Hill.
Dr. Thorpe says policy makers attending this forum must address costs and find a way to make chronic diseases more manageable through early detection, diet, exercise, and treatment therapy.
AMA to Dallas Morning News: In Health Care, Prevention is Key
Dallas Morning News | Mar. 30, 2009
Doctors see the repercussions the failing health care system has on the uninsured. Despite the fact that nearly 70 percent of physicians provide charity care, most uninsured patients don't have regular access to the preventive care they need to lead healthier lives.
Many serious health problems are preventable, and if we can help Americans live healthier, we can reduce disease and decrease health care spending in the long run.
Chronic diseases overlooked as healthcare cost burden
The Hill | Mar. 30, 2009
In outlining the challenges we face in health reform, President Obama and leaders in Congress have rightly focused on the tremendous cost of the system and finding ways to improve the affordability of care. They understand that we cannot effectively expand access or improve quality without curtailing the rate of growth in spending and creating a more efficient system.
Life in the ER
Post and Courier | Mar. 29, 2009
"In South Carolina, and across the country, chronic diseases such as diabetes and asthma are a major cause of emergency room visits," said Anthony Quattrone, state director of the S.C. Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Congress Is Buying Time for Health-Care Savings
Wall Street Journal | Mar. 27, 2009
Savings could come from reducing incentives for health-care providers to perform unnecessary medical procedures; addressing regional differences in costs; providing more information to providers about effective treatments; and promoting prevention among consumers, advocates said.
Treating N.C.'s problems
News and Observer | Mar. 27, 2009
As a physician who has practiced medicine in North Carolina for more than 30 years, I am extremely concerned about our state's health care system. My patients, and your family and friends, are being served by a system that is in danger of collapsing because of rising costs, elevated levels of chronic disease and the strains of a waning economy.
Obesity conference call
Washington Times | Mar. 27, 2009
Today, we are joining forces to suggest a national effort to combat obesity, the nation's No. 1 public health problem. The reason, of course, is self-evident. Americans are gaining weight at an alarming rate. Children are eating more, exercising less and becoming diabetic. Obesity is having a profound effect on our health and our national economy.
Billions: Needless medical cost
Charleston Gazette | Mar. 26, 2009
Emory University health policy professor Ken Thorpe told legislators that obesity, diabetes, hypertension and other chronic ailments consume three-fourths of the Mountain State's $11.5 billion yearly medical spending.
Efforts to curb these curses could save $2.7 billion in government and private costs by 2018, he estimated. But if no health reforms occur, he testified, this state's medical tab may balloon to $23 billion annually in the next decade.
Health Reform: An Opportunity For Change
Washington Times | Mar. 25, 2009
Speakers at White House-Sponsored Forum Discuss Possibility of Public Health Coverage Option, Preventive Care
Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report | Mar. 24, 2009
Attendees suggested ways to reduce chronic conditions, promote disease prevention and expand electronic health records. Several physicians raised issues with the current reimbursement system that puts little or no emphasis on preventive care. Harkin said, "You can't talk about reforming something you don't have and right now, we don't have a health care system, we have a sick care system."
Analysts Eye New Tactics to Deliver Chronic Care
CQ HealthBeat | Mar. 23, 2009
Among the lessons policy makers should draw from these approaches is the importance of following the patient through the hospital visit into other treatment settings and of in-person visits to monitor patients once they are discharged, said Susan Reinhard, director of AARP’s Public Policy Institute.
Harkin: “Preventive Care Needs Emphasis”
Roll Call | Mar. 23, 2009
In his speech to Congress last month, President Barack Obama stated his intention to see health care reform passed this year. He also made it clear that the heart of his reform plan will be a sharp new emphasis on wellness and disease prevention. As the president said, it is time “to make the largest investment ever in preventive care because that’s one of the best ways to keep our people healthy and our costs under control.”
White House health care forum in Des Moines today
Radio Iowa | Mar. 23, 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease plans to stage a rally at nine o'clock this morning, an hour before the forum starts, to highlight their agenda when it comes to health care reform. Jim Swanstrom is co-chair of the Iowa Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. "As we approach health care reform, I think we all understand and realize that it's going to be a daunting task," Swanstrom says.
Presidential Health Care Forum Tomorrow
WHO-TV.com | Mar. 22, 2009
Tomorrow morning, President Obama's administration launches its national push for health care reform in Des Moines. It will be the first of five across the country.
According to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, 45% of Americans have a chronic illness that costs $1.5 trillion each year to fight. The partnership will voice Iowans' concerns from Mercy Medical Center, right to Obama's administration.
We can save lives, our economy by reducing rampant chronic illness, says guest writer Don Riegle
Flint Journal | Mar. 22, 2009
Chronic illnesses now affect nearly half of all Americans -- many of whom are working adults. Current estimates place the annual cost of heart disease and stroke at $448 billion. For perspective, this is more than 25 times the $17.4 billion economic bailout recently provided to the auto industry.
'Young invincibles' OK with risk of no insurance
CNN Health | Mar. 20, 2009
"In cases where somebody who doesn't have health insurance shows up in the emergency room, we all end up paying for it. Taxpayers pay for it. People with private insurance pay for it. Somebody's picking up the bill."
According to Thorpe, who is also the executive director of an organization called the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, about $50 billion a year is spent to cover medical bills incurred by the uninsured.
Obama's traveling forum on healthcare visits Vt.
Boston Globe | Mar. 18, 2009
The free-flowing and often passionate conversation, which lasted two hours, was far more detailed and lively than the relatively formal one held at the White House earlier this month. The doctors, patients, business people, and government officials repeatedly emphasized similar themes: the need to prevent and manage chronic disease better, attract more primary care doctors, simplify bureaucracy, and find a way to get everyone access to treatment at an affordable price.
Health care reform, let's do it right
Newark Star-Ledger | Mar. 18, 2009
As co-chairs of the New Jersey Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, we have worked during the past year to educate public policymakers on one critical component to the health care reform effort: the need to recognize the role chronic disease prevention and treatment can play in this endeavor. It appears our message is getting through. The president's budget makes the largest investment in preventive care in our nation's history.
Bill aims for coverage for pre-existing conditions
Modern HealthCare (online) | Mar. 17, 2009
Two congressional Democrats said they would introduce legislation today that creates a blanket requirement for all insurance companies to cover the more than 133 million Americans who suffer from diabetes, heart disease and other pre-existing medical conditions.
'Access' initiative will make South Carolinians healthier
Charleston Post and Courier | Mar. 17, 2009
This issue is not limited to Charleston's tourism industry. South Carolina's uninsured population is growing. It's now estimated that one in six adults in our state have no health insurance. And with family coverage approaching $12,000 a year, most of our state's working poor do without it.
AMA to The Oregonian: Reforming How We Pay for Health Care
The Oregonian | Mar. 15, 2009
There are several ways we can reduce costs and still maintain a high value for our health care spending. Focusing on preventive care and healthy lifestyles can reduce the occurrence of preventable disease and the substantial costs associated with treating them. By improving coordination of care, better managing chronic illnesses, and increasing the use of health information technology, we can make health care delivery more efficient and improve value for patients.
Chronic disease is a pain for the Granite State
Foster’s Daily Democrat | Mar. 13, 2009
President Obama has stated that 2009 is the year to reform health care in America. While I am excited at the prospect of these reforms, I hope President Obama along with Senators Gregg and Shaheen and Congressmen Hodes and Shea Porter don't forget the biggest driver of our health care costs today: chronic disease.
House Subcommittee Focuses on Employer Costs in Health Reform Hearing
Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report | Mar. 11, 2009
Emory University health policy Professor Kenneth Thorpe said that uncompensated care costs in 2008 totaled $57.4 billion, which is covered by the federal government and private payers. James Winkler of Hewitt Associates said, "We believe it is reasonably conservative to assume that the additional cost incurred by private plans to offset provider costs for uncompensated care is about 2% to 3% of an employer's health care costs."
Sanjay Gupta Health Care Reform Interviews
Larry King Live | Mar. 11, 2009
Former President Bill Clinton says on health reform:
I still think the big test now is going to be how do we do more to bring costs in-line with our competitors and improve health care? We've got to do more primary prevention, that's why I spent so much time on the obesity issue, because I think that if we don't change the deliver system, then we'll cover everybody for a while, but we'll be up to 18 or 19 percent of our income on health care and eventually we won't be able to afford it.
White House Plans Regional Health Care Forums
New York Times Blog The Caucus | Mar. 10, 2009
PFCD Executive Director Ken Thorpe writes:
Chronic disease prevention and management is one of these areas: it has bipartisan support from the President and Congress, and shows great promise for reduce costs and improving quality. We should start the discussion by looking at these and other consensus-based solutions that will hopefully start us on a path to accomplish all three goals of health care reform.
Senate Finance Chairman Sets Summer Deadline for Health Care Overhaul
CQ Politics | Mar. 10, 2009
A key Senate chairman Tuesday firmed up a deadline for getting a health care overhaul bill to the president, promising to have the measure out of committee by June and to President Obama by the summer’s end. Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus , D-Mont., doubled down on his own self-imposed timeline, promising earlier action than the president has asked for.
Obama's health principles, translated
Politico | Mar. 10, 2009
The plan must invest in public health measures proven to reduce cost drivers in our system - such as obesity, sedentary lifestyles and smoking - as well as guarantee access to proven preventive treatments.
Look for Democrats and Republicans to talk a lot about preventing chronic diseases.
Senators Size Up Health Savings and Search for More
CQ Healthbeat News | Mar. 10, 2009
Top Republican Charles E. Grassley of Iowa argued to Orszag, the former Congressional Budget Office director, that the CBO should give Congress credit for savings for proposing changes that could reduce costs such as those generated by fraud or waste.
Orszag, who is now charged with helping the administration hunt for savings, said, “CBO does not recognize those savings even though they are based on hard evidence that they would occur. It struck me when I was CBO director, and it continues to strike me that some revisiting of those rules would be warranted.”
Obama begins health reform drive with White House forum
Reuters | Mar. 5, 2009
Kenneth Thorpe, director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, said healthcare legislation in Congress would likely take the shape of a white paper issued last year by Max Baucus, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
"That really is the starting point," he said. "It largely reflects candidate Obama's healthcare reform proposals."
The Health-Care Crisis Hits Home
TIME Magazine | Mar. 5, 2009
When we talk about health-care reform, we usually start with the problem of the roughly 45 million (and rising) uninsured Americans who have no health coverage at all. But Pat represents the shadow problem facing an additional 25 million people who spend more than 10% of their income on out-of-pocket medical costs. They are the underinsured, who may be all the more vulnerable because, until a health catastrophe hits, they're often blind to the danger they're in.
How to fix healthcare
CNN | Mar. 5, 2009
A 90-second statement by PFCD Executive Director, Ken Thorpe.
Podesta: Latest Health Care Effort More Bipartisan
All Things Considered | Mar. 5, 2009
John Podesta, a former Clinton administration official who was involved in the failed attempt to overhaul U.S. health care in the 1990s, says:
"The president...said that he's trying to offer people more choices through this public plan, but there's room for dialogue and discussion of that," Podesta said. "The most important thing is that we have to keep people healthier, and we have to bend the excessive costs that the current systems are placing on our families, on our businesses and on our government."
Sebelius's Political Skills, Experience Win Plaudits
Washington Post | Mar. 2, 2009
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has never lost an election, even as a Democrat in a Republican-dominated state, something analysts attribute to cool competence, a lifelong education in politics and a knack for reaching across the political divide.
"She has a clear, substantive grasp of the issue," said Kenneth E. Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University who was an adviser to President Bill Clinton. "She also understands the politics. She has been trying to do health-care reform in a very difficult political environment."
Health Care Reform: A Delicate Operation
National Journal | Feb. 28, 2009
"The intellectual footprint of a bill is already laid out by the Senate and the Baucus white paper," according to Thorpe, who noted that aides for the Senate Finance and HELP committees have started to fill in the details and draft a joint bill. "Unlike the Clinton experience, where everyone was waiting for the administration, the real movement is in Congress this time," he said.
Health: Baucus Lays Fate of Reform With CBO
National Journal/Congress Daily | Feb. 26, 2009
Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus laid the fate of universal health coverage at the feet of CBO Wednesday, much to the resistance of the new head of the congressional bean-counting agency.
Ken Thorpe, executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, said that CBO will need to rethink scoring health options individually."If you look at some of the evolving proposals ... combining several of these options, I think, is where we're going to have to work with [CBO]," Thorpe said in an interview.
We Cannot Delay Health-Care Reform
Wall Street Journal | Feb. 26, 2009
Senators Max Baucus and Edward M. Kennedy write:
Health costs also will go down as more people get the preventive care and the timely effective treatments they need.
Health is a public good worthy of major, long-term investment. Our starting point will be the down payment of more than $600 billion that the president included in the budget released today. The challenge of crafting this public policy is certainly large. But just as Congress and the president met the first challenges of restoring our nation's economy, we must also keep our commitment to reforming health care -- now.
The Obama Budget and Health Reform
Huffington Post | Feb. 25, 2009
PFCD Executive Director Ken Thorpe writes:
Illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer, that in many cases could have been prevented by changes in behavior or could be better managed through early detection and appropriate access to treatment, have risen dramatically over the past three decades, leaving Americans in much worse shape at earlier and earlier ages.
The truth is, we can never expect to improve the affordability of health care until we face the dual crises of obesity and chronic disease. And, until we deal with cost, the chance of extending health care coverage to more Americans is grim.
Don't ease up on health reform
Asbury Park Press | Feb. 22, 2009
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a broad-based coalition active in 17 states, including New Jersey, is hoping to seize the moment by focusing on an idea on which virtually everyone can agree: the need to reduce health care costs by stressing early detection and prevention. It is incumbent upon everyone concerned about health care access, quality and cost to implore state and federal officials to finally address this issue.
Advocates: Preventive care key to cutting costs
Asbury Park Press | Feb. 18, 2009
Representatives of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, who met with the Asbury Park Press editorial board Tuesday, made this case, saying $7.5 billion is spent annually on the treatment of preventable diseases in the state. The partnership is composed of more than 100 patient, provider and community organizations, business and labor groups and health policy experts.
Leaders brainstorm an RX for nation's healthcare system
New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute | Dec. 30, 2008
This one, originally envisioned for a dozen or so policymakers, ignited so much interest that participation had to be capped, said David Knowlton, who co-hosted it as president of the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute and a co-chairman of the state Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Health Reform’s Moment
Washington Post | Dec. 14, 2008
Columnist David Broder, a participant in the PFCD's event, "Rhetoric to Reality: The Urgency of Health Reform," wrote about his panel:
"On the same morning that President-elect Barack Obama introduced Tom Daschle, the former Senate majority leader, as his prospective secretary of health and human services and his point man on health-care reform, a panel of key constituency group leaders met to assess the prospects for success."
Florio aids effort to reduce impact of chronic illnesses
New Jersey News | Nov. 6, 2008
With health insurance reform near the top of the U.S. political agenda, former New Jersey Gov. James Florio has given his support to a national campaign to raise awareness of the cost of chronic diseases. Florio and two fellow members of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease met with the Times of Trenton editorial board this week and said policymakers and businesses must work to reduce the impact of diseases such as asthma, cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
Even with mandate, Obama faces health care pain
Reuters | Nov. 5, 2008
President-elect Barack Obama has promised broad changes to U.S. health care, pledging to bring health insurance to millions of Americans and to spend $50 billion to take American health records electronic, but he will struggle to find the money to do it. Former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona said he did not see much trouble ahead for health care legislation. "We feel that it is truly a bipartisan agenda," he said.
Aging Gracefully: Health care big issue for next president
News Press (FL) |
Nov. 4, 2008
The Alzheimer's Foundation of America reported in its Oct. 23 newsletter that a study conducted earlier in the month, sponsored by the non-partisan Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, showed that six in 10 of the 1,500 Americans surveyed say that "health care is 'the major issue' or 'one of the major issues' that will influence their vote decision."
Vote Like Your Health Depends On It
Somebody Heal Me (Blog) | Nov. 4, 2008
If you watch TV you may have noticed some famous female faces, such as Mary Louise Parker and Lauren Bacall, encouraging voters to educate themselves about the candidates' positions on chronic disease and cast their votes accordingly on or before election day, Tuesday, November 4, 2008.
Women Celebrities: Ask Candidates Tough Questions on Health Care, Chronic Disease (Video)
wowOwow.com (Blog) | Oct. 30, 2008
Celebrity women have come together to launch a national TV advertising campaign urging voters to "vote like your health depends on it," and do your homework on health-care issues before going to the polls on November4.
Health-care premiums outpace pay in N.J.
The Star-Ledger | Oct. 23 2008
Good health care can reduce costs, according to Donald Sico, a spokesman for the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease -- New Jersey, a health advocacy group. "Unless we come to grips with the cost side of the equation, primarily the prevention and treatment of chronic disease, we will never be able to provide everyone with the universal access to quality health care we all desire," he said in an e-mail.
Increasing health care costs could send system into a crash
Cleveland Plains Dealer | Oct. 19, 2008
The Ohio chapter of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease is part of a national movement with bipartisan, broad-based support from government and industry. The focus is on moving upstream to prevent the chronic diseases that are bankrupting our country. We can save millions of lives in the process.
Health Care Sneaking Up on the Economy
National Public Radio (Vox Politics Blog) | Oct. 15, 2008
Remember when gas was four bucks a gallon and gas prices were the top issue for voters? That was so five minutes ago. Now a new poll shows that yes, it's the economy, stupid. But guess what's leaped back into second place? Health care.
Obama favored by group of Ohio women
The Columbus Dispatch | Oct. 15 2008
Fifty women gathered in a Columbus hotel's conference room and got to do what millions of Americans probably wanted to do tonight: Tell the presidential candidates exactly what they thought of them. The debate-watching event was organized by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Partnership tackles chronic diseases
Associated Press | Oct. 15, 2008
Delaware's Partnership to Fight Chronic Diseases says it is working with several state organizations to encourage citizens to live healthy lives.
The partnership includes faith, business, health care and labor organizations. They say they are teaming to reduce deaths and disabilities tied to chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, stroke and cancer.
Healthcare ranks second to economy
United Press International | Oct. 15, 2008
Although the economy is getting the most headlines, a U.S. survey indicates healthcare is another top issue for likely voters in the presidential race. The nationwide survey, sponsored by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease and conducted by Lake Research Partners, says that while the economy is the topic on most minds, healthcare a strong second.
Nutter promotes Pa. effort on chronic illnesses
Philadelphia Inquirer | Oct. 15, 2008
Mayor Nutter yesterday helped launch a statewide effort to bring attention to chronic illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, strokes and mental disorders.
Led by the newly formed Pennsylvania coalition of the national Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, the goal is to create policies to help reduce skyrocketing health-care costs.
Survey: Men and Women View Health Care as a Priority Voting Issue CQ Healthbeat (subscription only) | Oct. 14, 2008
Health care ranks right below the economy as a top presidential voting issue, and now men are following the lead of female voters in calling it a major concern, according to a survey released Tuesday of 1,500 likely voters across the country.
Financial Crisis Will Impact Healthcare Heavily
MedPage Today | Oct. 10, 2008
The worldwide financial crisis and credit crunch will not spare the healthcare and medical communities, and they should brace for some major upheavals, warn economists, executives, and physicians…In an October teleconference call entitled "Is Healthcare the Next Big Financial Bailout?" sponsored by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, health economist Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., director of the group, and Tommy Thompson, a former secretary of HHS, argued that the bailout only makes the need to reform healthcare more acute.
Chronic Disease Partnership Promotes Primary Care as Way to Avert Health Care Meltdown
American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) | Oct. 10, 2008
Averting an impending crisis in the nation's health care system like that now plaguing the financial markets could require the next Congress to consider reforming the Medicare physician payment system to promote the use of primary care services to improve health care quality and save costs.
Could health care make a comeback?
Politico | Oct. 7, 2008
At the start of this presidential campaign, there were many who believed -- and hoped -- health care reform had recovered from its 1993 thrashing and would rise anew to become a deciding issue in 2008...
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease -- a large, bipartisan organization that’s pushing for reforms in the next administration -- is working with WebMD and Belmont University to submit questions that could be put to the candidates.
New take on chronic disease (Editorial)
Toledo Blade | Oct. 5, 2008
Chronic diseases top the list of reasons for death and disability in the United States, and most health-care dollars are spent on management, not prevention. That's backwards.
The campaign to change how we look at heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and stroke is gaining interest. Ohio has a chapter in the national Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. It is part of an effort to make nonpartisan politics aware of the issue and of the cost of chronic disease.
Health Matters: Not Dead Yet
National Journal | Oct. 3, 2008
And it's not just Medicare that will be pushed to the forefront by the current economic woes, said Emory University health economist Ken Thorpe on that same conference call. He's been working with Thompson for the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. Thorpe says the state of the economy makes the case for health reform next year even more compelling
Chronic Disease Costs More Than 2 Wall Street Bailouts Per Year
MedPolitics | Oct. 1, 2008
I attended a press conference call today sponsored by the Partnership To Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD). Former Secretary of HHS, Tommy Thompson, and Ken Thorpe, Executive Director of PFCD. One of the journalists on the line with me helped to frame the size of the healthcare financial crisis this way: chronic disease is costing us more than 2 Wall Street bailouts per year.
Healthcare system: the next financial meltdown?
Los Angeles Times | Sept. 30, 2008
When Tommy Thompson scans the horizon, here's what he sees. "The next catastrophe." Thompson is former secretary of Health and Human Services under President George W. Bush, former governor of Wisconsin, and former Republican presidential candidate. He held a conference call with Kenneth Thorpe, former deputy assistant secretary of policy at HHS under President Bill Clinton and now executive director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. "Healthcare has the potential of being the next calamity," Thompson said.
Fighting chronic illness is key to health costs
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | Sept. 27, 2008
PFCD Wisconsin co-chair Tommy Thompson writes, "These days, trouble on Wall Street and the housing crisis have Congress and the presidential candidates scrambling for answers to fix our faltering economy.
"However, there is one unexpected long-term option that can help our stalling economy — reforming our health care system through enhanced prevention and wellness."
Chronic disease forum can help businesses cut costs
Dayton Daily News | Sept. 25, 2008
Business leaders, health care providers and policy-makers are the target audience for the Dayton Forum on Chronic Disease Oct. 10 from 8 to 10 a.m.
"The prevention and management of chronic diseases will bring down the costs that are one of the chief concerns of only employers, labor unions and anyone who is paying for health care," spokeswoman Jenny Camper said.
Former surgeon general urges companies to help prevent chronic disease
Twin Cities Finance and Commerce, MN | September 17, 2008
While the nation focuses on fixing troubled financial markets and presidential candidates debate national security, former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona is addressing a task he considers equally urgent – and too often overlooked.
One ounce here cuts pounds later
Gloucester County Times (NJ) | Sept. 14, 2008
New Jersey's civic, faith-based and government organizations deserve applause for joining forces to increase awareness of chronic diseases. Heart disease, asthma, cancer and diabetes are among the most prevalent medical maladies to affect Americans.
More effort on preventing chronic disease is urged
Toledo Blade | Sept. 13, 2008
Asthma, cancer, diabetes, and other chronic diseases — which affect 133 million Americans, including 7 million Ohioans — account for three-fourths of U.S. health care spending, expected to reach nearly $2.4 trillion this year.
Thompson looks back on 'dumb strategy' in Iowa
Cedar Rapids Gazette | Sept. 2, 2008
Since then, George W. Bush's former secretary of Health and Human Services has been working with the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. The group believes the strength and viability of the health care system lies in policies that help Americans better prevent and manage chronic illnesses.pshire."
Letter to the Editor: Jacob wrong on cost vs benefit
Star-Telegram (TX) | Sept. 1, 2008
I disagree with Steve Jacob’s generalization that prevention and chronic disease management programs cost more than they save. Well-designed prevention programs not only save money, but they make it easier to address the challenge of covering the uninsured. (See: "A tall order that’s becoming increasingly tough to meet," Aug. 24)
First day of the RNC
Quad City Times | Sept. 1, 2008
The featured speaker, in fact, was former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who is co-chair of Wisconsin’s chapter of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. Thompson, while talking up Republicans’ self reliance, gave a mostly apolitical speech. Most of the time he focused on the postition wellness will occupy as a part of health care reform and the need for people to live healthier lifestyles.
Tom Troy blogs the Denver Convention
Toledo Blade | August 27, 2008
James Ruvolo, former Ohio state Democratic chairman, is working the convention as a consultant for the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, which is trying to get both parties to adopt platform language aimed at having insurance pay for disease prevention, not just disease treatment.
New Almanac confronts the high costs of chronic disease
The Nation’s Health (APhA) | August 27, 2008
Today, more than 130 million Americans are living with one or more chronic diseases, with more than 75 cents of every health care dollar going toward treating such conditions, most of which are preventable. But current chronic disease costs are little when compared to the price the nation could pay in the future, according to a report released in June by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Democratic platform on health: It's not just the uninsured
Los Angeles Times: Booster Shots Blog | August 25, 2008
For the first time since healthcare has been written into political platforms, people are proposing ideas that look beyond the bottom line issue of how to deal with the problem of the uninsured. The new U.S. Census Bureau national statistics on health insurance are due out Aug. 26, and many experts believe they will show an increase over last year's 47 million uninsured Americans.
I-95 Corridor Health Fair provides tests, information about disease
Times & Democrat | August 9, 2008
Anthony Quattrone, state director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, addressed the organization’s efforts to prevent, delay or alleviate chronic diseases through simple changes in behavior and lifestyle and through more aggressive management of chronic disease.
"We urge everyone to join the fight against preventable chronic disease," Quattrone said.
Letter: Health-care costs
Philadelphia Inquirer | August 10, 2008
By using the challenge of the uninsured as the focus to examine the plans of Barack Obama and John McCain, The Inquirer misses the actual cause of what ails our health care system: high costs ("No miracle cures," Aug. 3).
Letter: Time to be heard on health-care crisis
Nashua Telegraph | August 11, 2008
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease estimates total costs related to chronic disease in New Hampshire, including direct expenditures (i.e. health care costs) and indirect costs (i.e. lost productivity) amount to $3.3 billion annually.
Could health IT revolutionize US healthcare?
MedPolitics (Blog) | July 30th, 2008
I interviewed former Congresswoman, Nancy Johnson (R-Connecticut), about her views on health information technology (IT). I first met Ms. Johnson at the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease conference in Washington, DC, and I was so intrigued with her perspectives that I arranged a follow-up interview at Baker Donelson's office where she is a member of the Firm's Federal Public Policy Group.
Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease: A young girl shares her story
The Doctor’s Channel | July 11, 2008
Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease is a national coalition of patients, providers, community organizations, business and labor groups and health policy experts, committed to raising awareness of policies and practices that save lives and reduce health costs through more effective prevention and management of chronic disease.
Letter: Fighting a silent killer
The New York Times | July 8, 2008
Re “Diabetes: Underrated, Insidious, and Deadly” (July 1): The American attitude toward diabetes is simply an extension of how chronic diseases in general are viewed in the U.S. These “underrated” conditions pose a serious threat to not only our health, but also the solvency of our health care system. We need a solution to this very real epidemic. It’s admirable that organizations like the American Diabetes Association are taking steps to increase public awareness, but the greater responsibility for implementing change falls to our elected leaders.
Despite cost of obesity, employers reluctant to tackle issue
Ohio Health Policy Review | June 24, 2008
Despite its proven impact on a company’s bottom line, obesity is a subject most employers shy away from addressing.
According to Kenneth Thorpe, a professor of public health at Emory University, and three colleagues, obesity accounted for 27 percent of the increase in medical costs from 1987 to 2001 and according to a report from the Conference Board and research institute RTI International, it costs companies $45 billion a year.
Chronic disease should be top priority
New Hampshire Business Review | June 20, 2008
In the United States, we spend more money each year maintaining our cars than we do maintaining our health. According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this country spends less per person on preventive health than the cost of an oil change.
Patients are the key to reducing chronic disease in America
Dr. Val and the Voice of Reason | June 17, 2008
Ken Thorpe, Ph.D., is the Executive Director of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, and is admired and respected by many of the "movers and shakers" in Washington. The outpouring of appreciation for his work was quite evident during the recent half day-conference entitled, "Fighting Chronic Disease: The Missing Link In Health Reform." I had the chance to speak with Ken to get his thoughts on chronic disease and health reform.
Life expectancies for S.C. woman in poor areas getting shorter
South Carolina Now | June 17, 2008
The crisis in South Carolina, according to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, is chronic disease. If you live here, chances are you will die or suffer a disability because of it. In fact, health experts consider the Palmetto State to be in a chronic disease crisis with nearly 1.5 million residents afflicted.
Coverage for uninsured must also address chronic disease
Cleveland Call & Post | June 11, 2008
Even if you do not suffer from a chronic disease, it’s a virtual certainty that someone very close to you is dealing with a chronic disease such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, mental disorders, pulmonary conditions, or stroke.
Death rates plunge, but chronic disease rises
Chicago Tribune (Blog) | June 11, 2008
A new organization, the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, is trying to make this a key health care issue in the upcoming presidential election. An impressive group of leaders is involved, including former U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona and the former administrator of Medicare, Dr. Mark McClellan.
A 2008 campaign flash point
Politico | June 10, 2008
In recent years, more than a half-dozen deep-pocketed, big-name coalitions have been formed to push health care back onto the national agenda in Congress and in the White House. Among them are: The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, which has spent the past year meeting with presidential candidates’ advisers to offer policy ideas for overhauling the health care system.
Vermont showcases Obama's health care plan
Politico | June 10, 2008
"I laid out these facts and saw Democrats and Republicans looking at each other," said Thorpe, who also heads the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a lobbying coalition pushing policymakers to focus on chronic care management.
US Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease
MortenCopenhagen (Blog) | June 10, 2008
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) is a national, bi-partisan coalition of 110 patients, providers, community organizations, business and labor groups, and health policy experts committed to raising awareness of the policies and practices that save lives and reduce health costs through more effective prevention and management of chronic disease.
Fighting chronic disease in Washington
BizCentral (Blog | June 9, 2008
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) and the Emory University Institute for Advanced Policy Solutions sponsored the conference, which addressed many issues surrounding healthcare reform. Three panels debated about chronic disease prevention and management, health care in the 2008 Presidential Election, and what the next administration needs to do to move health reform around fighting chronic disease.
REFORM: Bringing Down Chronic Disease
New Health Dialogue Blog (New America Foundation)| June 9, 2008
When asked why he robbed banks, Willie Sutton supposedly said "because that's where the money is." Ask health reform advocate Ken Thorpe why he spends so much of his time on chronic disease and he'll probably tell you the same thing: that's where the money is—about $1.58 trillion according to the CDC.
The Missing Link in Healthcare Reform
Dr. Val and the Voice of Reason (Blog) | June 7, 2008
I recently attended a halfy-day conference, "Fighting Chronic Disease: The Missing Link In Health Care Reform" sponsored by Emory University and the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD). It was an extremely well run event with an all-star political cast: Tom Daschle, Dick Gephardt, Dr. Mark McClellan, and Nancy Johnson were present.
Health care legislation might not top next administration's agenda, former house leader says
Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report | June 6, 2008
Legislation that would overhaul the U.S. health care system might take a back seat to other issues for the next administration, former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt (D-Mo.) said Thursday at a health care policy forum, CQ HealthBeat reports. The forum was sponsored by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Diseases and Emory University's Institute for Advanced Policy Solutions.
Employers have new online source for health programs
Dayton Daily News | June 5, 2008
Revamping U.S. health care may take back burner next year, experts say (Subscription only)
CQ Healthbeat News | June 5, 2008
Concerns over the ongoing war in Iraq, the economy and the environment may be more immediate concerns for the next president, former House Majority Leader Rep. Richard A. Gephardt, D-Mo., said at a forum sponsored by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease and the Emory University Institute for Advanced Policy Solutions.
Governor’s Health Care Panel Advises Medicaid Expansions, Requiring Ohioans Purchase Private Insurance (Subscription only)
Gongwer’s Ohio Report | May 30, 2008
Ohio this week to draw attention to the impact of chronic diseases on health care costs and the quality of life, according to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Obama faces swing-state dilemma as he nears nomination
Associated Press | May 28, 2008
Richard Carmona, former U.S. Surgeon General under President Bush, holds a community forum in Columbus Thursday as part of a presidential year effort to raise awareness about chronic illnesses such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease.
City urged to fight chronic disease, its consequences
The Columbus Dispatch | May 30, 2008
Groups Calls for Fighting Chronic Disease
Greenville News | May 24, 2008
"When we talk about health-care reform in this country and how to make health care more affordable, we must focus on the No. 1 driver of costs -- preventable and poorly managed chronic diseases," John Robitscher, partnership advisory board member, said in a statement.�
Life expectancy for women decline in parts of SC
Associated Press | May 23, 2008
Health advocates say life expectancy rates for women in 18 of South Carolina's 46 counties either went down or stayed the same during a recent 16-year span.� Researchers blamed life expectancy drops on high blood pressure and chronic diseases related to smoking and obesity, such as lung cancer and diabetes.
Live blog: Health-care reform at the state level
The Plain Dealer | May 22, 2008
The killer sofa and chronic disease
Austin American-Statesman | May 16, 2008
The HSC Foundation is not a part of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, but their message is the same: If Americans want to get serious about controlling health care spending, they need to control their lifestyles.
Diet, exercise and no smoking, could prevent the onset of chronic conditions and dramatically lower the amount spent on health care. And it could save huge amounts of money for Medicare, said Kenneth E. Thorpe, the partnership’s executive director and chairman of Emory University’s Department of Health Policy and Management.
Reports Highlights Prevalence, Cost of Chronic Disease (Subscription only)
CQ HealthBeat | May 15, 2008
Chronic diseases affect more than 130 million Americans each year, are responsible for seven in 10 deaths and account for more than 75 cents of every dollar spent on health care, according to a report released Thursday from the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Teenager fighting to knock out chronic disease
Garfield Community News| May 7, 2008
The New Jersey Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease was launched at two news conferences on April 15. Among the attendees was Sarah Yourman, a Fair Lawn High School student who is a cystic fibrosis, diabetes and Crohri's Disease patient.
John McCain's remarks at the Cleveland Clinic
The Plain Dealer | May 1, 2008
Chronic conditions -- such as cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and asthma -- account for three-quarters of the nation's annual health-care bill.
Letter: Chronic disease must be addressed
Greenville News | April 26, 2008
Health care is a quality-of-life issue, but it is also undeniably an economic issue. A recent study by the Milken Institute says that the annual economic impact on South Carolina of the most common chronic diseases is nearly $17 billion.
Letter: Adopt a few simple healthy habits to get most out of your life
USA Today | April 25. 2008
USA TODAY's article "Life spans decline in some U.S. areas" highlights a scary fact: Despite all the money we spend on health care in the USA, some Americans are living shorter lives than just a decade ago, largely due to poor health behaviors and lifestyle choices (Life, Tuesday).
Properly funded health programs vital
The Plain Dealer| April 23, 2008
New Jersey Leaders Join Forces to Battle Chronic Disease
Yahoo News | April 16, 2008
Stressing the major toll that chronic diseases take on the state's health care system, a broad, bipartisan coalition of influential New Jersey residents in the health care, business, labor and faith communities yesterday launched New Jersey Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD), a coalition committed to making chronic disease the key health care issue for current legislators, policy makers and candidates in the upcoming elections.
Letter to the editor: Response to “In the Balance”
Washington Post |
April 15, 2008
While it may sometimes be true that prevention costs more than treatment, we should not be reduced to perceiving health benefits only in terms of the cost of investment. Instead we must consider the value of our investments in health to individuals as well as to society.
Letter: Chronic illnesses
Post and Courier | April 15, 2008
Health care is a quality of life issue, but it is also a serious economic issue. A recent study by the Milken Institute says that the annual economic impact on South Carolina of the most common chronic diseases is nearly $17 billion.
Penny Wise and Pound Foolish
The State | April 15, 2008
The principle is simple: Chronic diseases can be prevented, modified or controlled with the appropriate patient and medical attention, and therefore, future health crises may be averted.
We all understand that economic growth in South Carolina has slowed and there is a crucial need to control state expenditures.
Anthem adds to disease coverage
Dayton Daily News| April 10, 2008
Ohioans spent $13.5 billion in 2003 for treating seven common chronic diseases — cancer, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, stroke, mental disorders and pulmonary conditions — the Milken Institute reported in October. Another $43.4 billion from lost workdays and lower productivity at work brought the total tab to $56.8 billion, or $65.3 billion in today's dollars.
Chronic Disease Costs Ohio $56.8B Annually (Subscription only)
Youngstown Business Journal | April 1, 2008
The annual economic impact on Ohio's economy of the most common chronic diseases is calculated to be $56.8 billion, according to a study by the Milken Institute. In the U.S. as a whole, the cost is a staggering $1 trillion, which could balloon to nearly $6 trillion by the middle of the century. Much of this cost, however, may be avoidable.
Americans skip medical care because of cost, AFL-CIO survey says The Plain Dealer |March 26, 2008
The California-based Milken Institute, an economic think tank, recently released a study on the economic costs of Americans living with common chronic diseases and is pushing for more prevention and early treatment. It showed that the cost to Ohio's economy is nearly $57 billion a year and to the nation about $1 trillion.
A chronic problem, and expensive, too
Crain’s Cleveland Business | March 24, 2008
Unhealthy Workers Cost Ohio Billions
The Daily Reporter | March 24, 2008
A new study released last week by the Milken Institute shows the annual economic impact on Ohio's economy by the most common chronic diseases is approximately $56.8 billion.
According to "An Unhealthy America: The Economic Burden of Chronic Disease," of that $56.8 billion, much of it, about $43.4 billion, represents the cost of lost productivity.
Deadly omission
Akron Beacon Journal| March 23, 2008
A second report released last week, by the Milken Institute, buttressed the findings of Families USA, concluding that the cost of chronic diseases totals $57 billion a year in Ohio, due to treatment and lost productivity. The study argued the sum could be reduced by $40 billion through basic preventive care.
Chronic diseases cost Ohio $57 billion a year, study says
Cleveland Plain Dealer | March 21, 2008
Seven chronic diseases - cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, lung diseases and mental illness - have a total impact on Ohio's economy of $56.8 billion annually, and more than $43 billion of that is the cost of lost productivity, according to the study.
Chronic diseases burdening Ohio's economy, expert says
Columbus Dispatch | March 21, 2008
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease launched an Ohio chapter, the fourth state chapter in the nation, to expand the health-care debate beyond coverage and financing to preventive care and chronic-disease management.
Researchers: 7 chronic diseases cost Ohio $56B
Dayton Daily News| March 21, 2008
Study Highlights Costs of Chronic Disease
WCPN Radio| March 21, 2008
Chronic disease costs Ohioans $57 billion each year
WKYC.com| March 21, 2008
Chronic Disease Costs Ohio $57 Billion A Year, Study Says (Subscription only)
Gongwer’s Ohio Report | March 20, 2008
The seven most common chronic diseases afflicting Ohioans cost the state's economy nearly $57 billion a year, but much of that is avoidable, according to a recent study.
Letter: More details, Sen. McCain
Concord Monitor |
March 19, 2008
Policymakers must address what is putting our children at risk. Why are the rates of asthma, diabetes, cancer and obesity in children higher than ever before? If Sen. McCain does become president, I hope he's capable of addressing the truth that this may be the first generation that will be less healthy and have a shorter life expectancy than their parents.
Blog: Chronic disease is culprit of high medical costs
Milwaukee Small Business Times | March 13, 2008
One of the country's largest health care reform campaigns has set its sights on Wisconsin. The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) launched in Wisconsin at the end of February with the intention of refocusing the health care debate both in the state and at the national level.
Few health plans pay for physicians’ times
Dayton Daily News | March 3, 2008
"We're sending the wrong financial signals," Emory University health economist Kenneth E. Thorpe said. As co-chairman of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, Thorpe wants to change the fee structure that resists measures to keep diabetes from flaring up, but readily pays billions more a year for kidney dialysis or foot amputations when it does.
Some argue health care focus is off
Dayton Daily News | March 3, 2008
"Everybody's been focusing on the wrong problem," said Kenneth E. Thorpe, the Emory University (Ga.) health economist and Democratic consultant. He's national co-chair, with two former Bush Administration officials, of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Green Bay may join public health initiative
Green Bay Press-Gazette | March 1, 2008
A program similar to the Sustainable Green Bay Initiative — only directed at public health, rather than energy savings — could be in the city's near future, Mayor Jim Schmitt said Friday. His announcement came at a press conference about state participation in a national initiative called the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. It
Chronic ills seen as focal point to reform health care
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | March 1, 2008
To Kenneth Thorpe, focusing on the growing prevalence of chronic diseases and their cost could be the starting point in building bipartisan support for health care reform.
Focusing on chronic disease can reduce health care costs
La Crosse Tribune | February 29, 2008
Members of a state and national bipartisan coalition — Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease — held a press conference in La Crosse to talk about their efforts to make chronic disease the major health care issue in the 2008 presidential election.
Signs of tonight's debate are few
Cleveland Plain Dealer | February 26, 2008
Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a national bipartisan coalition of health care, business and labor groups, will be sporting signs near the Wolstein center at around 6 p.m.
Chronic diseases put Americans at risk
Columbus Dispatch | February 25, 2008
Ohio PFCD partner James R. Castle, President and CEO of the Ohio Hospital Association of Columbus, authored this letter to the editor on chronic disease.
Ex-surgeon general says change needed
Post and Courier | February 22, 2008
"The health-care system needs to find a way to make money by keeping people healthy, Thorpe said. Chronic disease accounts for 75 cents of every health-care dollar spent. The "revolving door of health care" is breaking the system, he said.
Crucial conversation
Akron Beacon Journal | February 2, 2008
The focus on the chronically ill is not misplaced. Chronic conditions account for 75 percent of health care spending, according to the advocacy group, Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
PFCD partner Suzanne Mintz interviewed on NPR
NPR: Morning Edition | January 30, 2008
Suzanne Mintz, president and co-founder of the National Family Caregivers Association, discusses her recently released book, "A Family Caregiver Speaks Up: "It Doesn't Have to Be This Hard" with Terry Gross on NPR: Morning Edition.
Legislator proposes subsidies to expand health coverage
Cincinnati Enquirer | January 29, 2008
Chronic diseases such as diabetes or asthma account for as much as three-quarters of total health-care spending, and coverage for those with chronic diseases costs five times as much as those without a condition, according to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Opinion: 'an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure' - Benjamin Franklin
Arizona Daily Star | January 19, 2008
PFCD Chairman Dr. Richard H. Carmona writes, " The Arizona Legislature reconvened last week and I had the honor of addressing the Senate on opening day. I want to reach out to our elected leaders and to my fellow Arizonans on an issue that is overlooked and underappreciated: prevention."
Bloomberg decries health care leadership
Associated Press | January 18, 2008
The event at an Austin hospital was to talk health care with Lance Armstrong, a cancer survivor and seven-time Tour de France champion cyclist, and former surgeon general Richard Carmona. Carmona is leading a coalition of health groups trying to get presidential candidates to address chronic health issues.
Letter to the editor: Chronic disease prevention saves money
Des Moines Register | January 18, 2008
"The Register's Dec. 31 editorial, "Get Specific in Fight Against Chronic Disease," offers constructive suggestions for reducing the cost burden of chronic disease on our health-care system," write PFCD Iowa co-chairs former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad and Sarah Swisher, director of Iowa for Health Care and political director for SEIU Iowa.
Comparing the Candidates on Something that Really Matters
Palmetto Scoop | January 17, 2008
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a group that has truly endeared themselves to us for their hard work in raising awareness about critical health care issues, is set to release its voter guide on the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates Friday.�
A Health Care Voter Guide For South Carolina
Fits News | January 17, 2008
"We’re not the brightest bulbs in the house over here, so it took us nearly a day to realize that somebody posted an advance copy of the health care voter guide (put out by the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease) on our website yesterday…We’ve been poring over the guide and we’re pretty impressed by how thorough it is, and we wished we had realized earlier what a great scoop a FITS’ reader had sent our way.
Why We’re Passionate About Chronic Disease
Fits News | January 14, 2008
Given South Carolina’s abysmal health care situation, it’s no surprise that the subject of preventative disease has been high on the radar screen of Republican and Democratic presidential candidates currently courting Palmetto State voters.
Specific Answers Needed on Chronic Illnesses
The State| January 6, 2008
"America should guarantee everyone health care, regardless of ability to pay, but you don’t need to be a health economist to realize the wasteful system in place needs overhaul. We must demand it. We shouldn’t allow presidential candidates to simply join the band that grunts out a few compassionate notes for the sick and plays a conciliatory tune for lobbyists.”
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