Managed care provider UnitedHealth Group, with operations in Hartford, is pledging $2.25 million over three years to aid the YMCA of the USA in preventing obesity and associated chronic diseases.
The funding will help Ys across the country strengthen their obesity-prevention and intervention programs to help American families make smart choices about nutrition inside and outside the home, UnitedHealth and Y officials announced Monday.
In addition, UnitedHealth employees will participate in the YMCA’s Healthy Family Home and Diabetes Prevention Program efforts, said UnitedHealth Executive Vice President Jeannine Rivet.
UnitedHealth Group and the Y also will identify skills-based volunteer opportunities for employees to support their local Ys as part of the ongoing partnership and shared commitment to disease prevention and health promotion.
Nearly 34 percent of Americans over the age of 20 are obese – more than double the percentage 30 years ago – and another 34 percent are overweight.
Also, 17 percent of children ages 2 to 19 are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), based on 2007-2008 data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Obesity costs the United States an estimated $79.4 billion a year in health care expenses, spending that is projected to increase to $343.9 billion annually by 2018 if current trends continue, UnitedHealth and the Y said, citing America’s Health Ranking. Obesity is a cause of many preventable health problems including diabetes, heart disease and some forms of cancer.
