Hoodia Latina

Cost of obesity
Obesity has a tremendous impact on health care costs.

In 2000, obesity’s total economic impact on the economy was $117 billion, which breaks down to $61 billion in direct costs and $56 billion in indirect costs. This spending can be seen at work, at the doctor’s office and at home.

Businesses feel the impact of obesity through lost productivity and increased health and disability insurance costs. When evaluating business costs linked to obesity-related conditions, one analysis found that:

• Employees lost 39.9 million workdays, made more than 62 million visits to doctors’ offices and had 239 million restricted activity days; and
• Employers paid almost $13 billion for obesity-related health problems ($8 billion for health insurance expenditures, $2.4 billion for sick leave, $1.8 billion for life insurance and almost $1 billion for disability insurance).

Health problems associated with obesity are sending many people to the doctor’s office and the hospital:

• Compared to normal weight ranges, obesity is associated with increased medical spending for inpatient care, outpatient care and prescription medications. Obesity is estimated to increase health care costs by 44% and prescription costs by 77%.
• Direct obesity-related medical expenditures were estimated to be $75 billion in 2003.
• More than 8% of total private insurance medical spending is attributable to overweight conditions and obesity.
• Americans spend $33 billion each year on weight-loss products and services.

What can employers do?

By promoting healthy lifestyles through nutrition and physical activity, businesses can make a difference. Worksite wellness programs can improve the health of employees, increase productivity, improve morale and reduce absenteeism. These types of programs vary from business to business. Some examples of wellness initiatives include:

• educating employees about direct and indirect costs of obesity;
• providing incentives for employees to join local fitness centers;
• creating opportunities for physical activities during the workday;
• offering incentives for employees to live healthy lifestyles; and
• eliminating unhealthy or high-fat foods from company cafeterias and vending machines

Source Biz Voice