Obesity Prevention Policy Making in Texas

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Obesity Prevention Policy Making in Texas

Obesity Prevention Policy

State healthcare policy in Texas consists of and is based on laws and regulations regarding the proper functioning of the state healthcare system. As part of an effective health care system, state citizens receive medical services to diagnose, treat, and prevent various diseases. The healthcare system may also refer to policies related to health insurance, new technologies, and pharmaceuticals. All 50 states meet annually at the National Conference to make joint decisions on developing new health policies (Healthcare policy in Texas, 2021). Similar approaches are also being developed at the federal level and at the level of private organizations and local authorities. Health policies can be multi-pronged and include developing new legislation, launching local initiatives such as schools or hospitals, influencing certification requirements for health workers, and engaging the public and local communities. Such policies often apply to insurance and other compensation, which may be perceived as incentives or supportive charitable funding.

Obesity Prevention in Texas

Obesity is a national health problem, especially in Texas. The state is the leader in obesity rates in a population of all ages, exacerbating the risks associated with cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes. Environmental factors can play a decisive role in the development of obesity. Typically, the socio-economic context significantly impacts the emergence of the problem in local communities in the state, regardless of other factors. Therefore, the state immediately needed to launch a policy to combat and prevent obesity in the population (Obesity prevention program, 2021). The policy focused on promoting healthy habits, raising awareness, and communicating healthy eating habits, including guidelines with the details of dietary prescriptions. When developing a new policy, it was decided to pay special attention to childhood obesity, as it is a significant predictor of excess weight in adulthood.

Therefore, in 2003, the Texas School Nutrition Policy was launched. As part of this initiative, the state has set nutritional standards. The policy focused on reducing the availability of unhealthy foods in schools, reducing portion sizes, and restricting the presence of harmful substances in meals, such as trans fats. Awareness campaigns were carried out that encouraged mothers to breastfeed. Residents were provided with better access to clean and fresh drinking water and physical activity were promoted through information in health facilities and schools. A fund was formed to fund healthy eating in state schools. The initial initiative was a success and was followed by the launch of the Obesity Prevention Program in 2013 (Obesity prevention program, 2021). The program brought together healthy eating, obesity prevention, work-based health programs, and daily physical activity promotion.

Three Characteristics in the Development of the Obesity Prevention Policy

One of the most important characteristics of any policy is its representation in legislation. Therefore, the program paid more attention to the existing legislation regulating healthy eating and developing new laws with good potential. Texas Constitution and Statutes include the Health and Safety Code, where Chapter 116 is dedicated to the Early Childhood Health and Nutrition Interagency Council (Texas Constitution and Statutes, 2021). In addition, Texas Health and Safety Code have a title 6 Subtitle A that covers the Food and Drug Health Regulation, including the Texas Food, Drugs and Cosmetic Act, Texas Meat and Poultry Inspection Act, Public Health Provisions Relating to Production of Baked Goods and other laws.

State responsibility is another important feature in any state policy. As mentioned on the Texas Health and Human Services website, the state declares responsibility for implementing the program in the areas of healthy nutrition, physical activity, and worksite wellness (Obesity prevention program, 2021). In the OPP Priority Status document, it is mentioned that the state is dedicated to improve key social determinants that most impact obesity; improve health equity; increase resources and capacity of local health departments and community organizations to address obesity (Department of State Health Services, 2016, p. 3). The state is also meant to transform environments in Texas with evidence-based interventions addressing physical activity and healthy eating, and evaluate intervention data to ensure successful, impactful, and efficient use of public health resources (Department of State Health Services, 2016, p. 3). Therefore, the state demonstrates responsibility for policy implementation and monitoring and control of its performance.

The third important element of the policy-making process is the relation to federal policy. The CDC guidelines and practical requirements represent the US obesity prevention strategies. Experts note that federal, state, and local policies usually align with each other since they have common goals (Shi, 2019, p. 75). Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity Prevention Strategies of the CDC feature The CDC Guide to Strategies to Increase Physical Activity in the Community, The CDC Guide to Strategies to Increase the Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables, The CDC Guide to Breastfeeding Interventions, and other documents (Prevention strategies and guidelines, 2021). Given the universal nature of the tips presented in the guidelines, they can easily be applied to the development of information campaigns within the framework of a state program. The cooperation between the federal, state, and other participants, like schools and medical organizations, is usually made possible due to political will and is enhanced by the planning elements of the policy.

References

Department of State Health Services obesity prevention program priority objectives 2016 2021. Web.

Healthcare policy in Texas. (2021). Web.

Obesity prevention program. (2021). Web.

Prevention strategies & guidelines. (2021). Web.

Texas Constitution and Statutes. (2021). Web.

Shi, L. (2019). Introduction to health policy (2nd ed.). Health Administration Press.

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