It’s official. The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico now rates as the worst oil spill in U.S. history. Besides the initial capping and clean up issues, we’ll continue to deal with the effects of this disaster for many, many years to come.

I find it highly instructive to hear BP employees speak about the disaster and how they knew of no action plan should something like this occur. One has to wonder how that could possibly be.

If true, I believe the leaders of our country should take note, especially where health care is concerned. What’s the connection between the oil spill and our new health care policy? While the goal of providing health care for everyone has merit, is there any research that this plan will work? Where’s the action plan and the scientific evidence that it will reduce our health care costs and leave our citizens healthier?

I am a true believer that everyone in this country should have excellent health care. But I also believe that we are now setting up health care entities for failure, instead of helping them succeed.

It’s estimated that over 70 percent of health care dollars are spent on chronic diseases. While genetics and environmental factors are responsible for some of these cases, there is a significant portion of the population that develops chronic diseases due to behavioral issues.

That being the case, it seems reasonable to address health care from a perspective of prevention. Is there anyone in Washington with a public health background (aside from the few physicians) that can focus on preventable health care? I haven’t heard one politician speak of prevention except to speak about immunizations.

Remember the H1N1 scare last year? Public health officials sprinted into high gear with public information and education campaigns. The airwaves were full of public service announcements and pamphlets were sent home from schools and posted in public places. By contrast, 65-percent of our citizens, many of them children, are considered overweight and/or obese, yet there is little being done to help educate and teach them about healthy life choices.

Like a time bomb waiting to explode, this population is growing older and starting to develop preventable chronic diseases like heart disease, cancer and diabetes. We as a country will be paying to treat these diseases. Our overweight and obesity issues occurred over decades but we have the ability, and the obligation to help individuals protect their health, the health of their families, and significantly reduce unnecessary health care usage and costs.

Being healthy is difficult to define, but politicians need to stop wasting time with questionable laws (e.g., caloric requirements on menus, lower-sodium requirements) and start acting like public health representatives. They need to recognize that it’s in the public’s interest to steer individuals on a path to safer and healthier habits. Scientific research proves making these changes can save thousands of lives on a daily basis.

Every company, school, state, and country needs to have a “plan of action” in place to protect individuals and communities. Maybe every Senator and Congressman should take a course in public health to truly be the best representative to protect our health and the welfare of our country. We’re spending too much time cleaning up after the fact. Someone somewhere had to think “what if there’s an explosion on an oil rig?”

Author Bio: A public health specialist, behavioral therapist, researcher, and certified health/fitness instructor, Dr. Therese Pasqualoni has served as a health consultant to companies, universities, and high schools. She has developed numerous health programs. Go to http://www.strikeithealthy.com for more info.

Category: Wellness, Fitness and Diet
Keywords: health care, health programs, strike it healthy, BP Oil Spill, public health, Therese Pasqualoni