Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont Launches Pediatric Partnership to Combat Childhood Obesity

For immediate release: August 2, 2010
Contact:  Kevin Goddard  (802) 371-3225

The Good Health Club Physician Toolkit SM Newest Blue Cross and Blue Shield Effort to Curb the Rise in Diabetes

WASHINGTON - In collaboration with the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) and Blue companies nationwide, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont (BCBSVT) today launched the Good Health Club Physician Toolkit-unique educational materials designed to foster better communication between pediatricians and their patients on childhood obesity and diabetes prevention.  The toolkit will be available to pediatricians in Vermont in time for back-to-school physician visits prior to the 2010-2011 school year.

The toolkit, developed in consultation with the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), also builds on materials that Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies have successfully used across the country to encourage healthy choices and behaviors for children. The toolkit is available in both English and Spanish and contains tip sheets, wall posters, physician reference materials, tracking sheets, and brochures with educational information.

"As a non-profit, community-based health plan that has been providing health care coverage for generations of Vermonters, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is committed to working with health care providers to develop innovative programs to address chronic conditions and to improve the health of our state's children," said Don George, President and CEO of BCBSVT. "The launch of The Good Health Club Physician Toolkit takes the fight against childhood obesity to a new level, by providing pediatricians with essential tools to encourage lifelong healthy living habits for Vermont's youth."

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in the last two decades type 2 diabetes (formerly known as adult-onset diabetes) has been reported among U.S. children and adolescents with increasing frequency.  One in three U.S. children born in 2000 could develop diabetes during their lifetime and the prevalence of obesity among children aged 6 to 11 more than doubled in the past 20 years, going from 6.5 percent in 1980 to 17 percent in 2006.

The Good Health Club Physician Toolkit features messages from the "Good Health Club," a group of animal characters that encourages children to:

  • Eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables every day

  • Limit screen time to 2 hours or less

  • Get at least 1 hour of physical activity

  • Limit sweetened drinks to 0

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont has pioneered programs in our community such as the highly acclaimed Better Beginnings Program, which provides education and support to pregnant women. The program is credited with reducing the incidence of babies born with low birth-rates to among the lowest rates in the country.

A just-released compendium-- Commitment to the Next Generation of Healthy Americans-details how Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont and other Blue companies are leveraging local partnerships to build, design and support programs that target obesity and diabetes prevention.

To view the Good Health Club Physician Toolkit and for more information about what the Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies are doing in their communities to combat childhood obesity and diabetes, please visit www.bcbs.com/goodhealthclub.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is the state's oldest and largest private health insurer, providing coverage for about 150,000 Vermonters.  It employs over 350 Vermonters at its headquarters in Berlin and branch office in South Burlington, and offers group and individual health plans to Vermonters.  More information is about Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is available on the Internet at www.bcbsvt.com. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is an independent corporation operating under a license with the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.