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June 24, 2005
Physicians Plus Insurance Corporation Partners with Community to Launch Aggressive Campaign to Reverse Obesity Epidemic
Green Bay Packer Stars Rally Kids and Parents with Autographs For Action Event At Kids Day At The Zoo
Although one of the nation’s biggest health priorities is to reduce the prevalence of childhood obesity, current data indicates that the situation is worsening rather than improving. To help buck these trends, Physicians Plus Insurance Corporation has rallied the community to launch GET OUT (GO), a unique campaign dedicated to demonstrating to the younger generation that it “pays to play.”
According to the CDC, a major contributor to the growing obesity epidemic is the increase of sedentary lifestyles, which also increases the risk of health conditions such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, strokes and some cancers.
The groundbreaking campaign from Physicians Plus, with the help of several community partners, will target sedentary kids with incentives for getting out of the house. The centerpiece of the campaign is the GO Passport, available soon by calling 1-866-GO GET OUT, visiting www.pplusic.com, or stopping by a participating sponsor. The GO Passport includes a yearlong list of activities around the home and community. Depending on the activity, kids can have their parents sign the page or receive a GO stamp from the participating sponsor upon completion. Incentives range from taking a walk with their parents to visiting the Henry Vilas Zoo. The more involved the task, the more points awarded. Once a child earns the minimum number of points, they return the passport for a chance to win a prize, including a Rainbow Play Systems backyard structure, Schwinn bikes for the whole family, a family vacation, free YMCA memberships and many more.
A number of Madison area businesses have provided coupon offerings for the passport to help recognize and celebrate the efforts of the GO participants. “We really like the idea of the GO Passport, and are pleased that visiting the Henry Vilas Zoo is one of its activities," says Judy Miyagawa, program manager, Henry Vilas Park Zoological Society. "We hope thousands of parents and kids get more active by filling their passports at events like Kids Day at the Zoo and by visiting the Zoo throughout the year.”
When the Green Bay Packers heard about GO, they quickly responded by sending four of their most fit players, including Donald Driver, Antonio Chapman, Andrea Thurman and Nadjai Davenport, to help Physicians Plus launch the campaign at Autographs for Action (see attached), where kids can receive autographs only by completing a simple exercise for them, such as jump roping and hoola-hooping.
“Fighting sedentary lifestyles with an awareness campaign is simply not enough,” says Donald Driver, Green Bay Packer Wide Receiver. “It’s great to see a campaign like GO that moves well beyond awareness to actually getting kids to do something about it. This is truly a great way to get them outside and away from their computers, televisions and game systems.”
According to Ron Parton, Physicians Plus vice president and chief medical officer, the widespread epidemic of childhood obesity has put children’s long term health in extreme danger and is the reason why Physicians Plus has put together such an innovative and aggressive campaign. “The largest health risk among children today is the rise of type 2 diabetes. Ten years ago, I would have said this doesn’t occur until after age 40. Today, an increasing percentage of pediatric patients are now being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes,” says Parton. “Just look at the annual hospital costs related to overweight children. It has more than tripled over the past two decades.”
The CDC also reports that more than half of young people are not active on a regular basis and that the percentage of overweight children has more then tripled over the past 30 years. In fact, the CDC reported that more than a third of kids under 6 have a TV or computer in their bedroom.
“Physicians Plus is committed to improving the health of this community,” says Parton. “With childhood obesity being a top health concern, GO gives us the opportunity to be proactive by helping community members take better care of themselves. It is our hope that they will take advantage of everything GO has to offer.”
For more information on the GO campaign, please call 608-260-7147 or 800-545-5015, ext. 7147, or visit www.pplusic.com.
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