How Far Have We Come in Reducing Health Disparities? by Institute of Medicine

Author:Institute of Medicine
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Health and Medicine: Healthcare and Quality, Health and Medicine: Public Health and Prevention
ISBN: 9780309255332
Publisher: The National Academies Press
Published: 2011-11-21T00:00:00+00:00

• raising awareness of the health risks of obesity by independent, nonpartisan efforts,

• coordinating voluntary commitments by the private sector and the not-for-profit sector, and

• holding the federal government accountable by establishment of aggressive benchmarks.

Discussion

Anne Beal from the Aetna Foundation noted that although consensus around the recognition that obesity is a major health problem in the United States does seem to exist, there is considerably less agreement on how best to approach the problem of obesity. For example, some states are proposing a tax on sugary drinks and sodas. However, the federal government provides subsidies to farmers who grow some of the sugars used in these drinks. This is an issue that crosses policies at the local, state, and federal levels, and there is no easy way to resolve policy conflicts such as this one. Susan Sher noted that although this is a federal issue, there is no real consensus on resolving the federal farm subsidies. Rather, the First Lady’s Office is focused on those areas where consensus can be achieved.

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