Coalition Calls on Presidential Hopefuls to Continue Dialogue on Chronic Disease Following Historic Univision Debate
Rising disease rates in Hispanic community warrant further discussion from candidates
Washington, D.C. - The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) urged presidential candidates to continue discussing solutions to America's chronic disease crisis following this evening's Univision Presidential Debate, in which Republican candidates addressed the problem of chronic disease in the Hispanic community.
"The participants in tonight's debate took an important step toward improving our nation's health by acknowledging the severe impact of chronic disease on the Hispanic community," said Dr. Elena Rios, president and CEO of the National Hispanic Medical Association and member of the PFCD advisory board. "Hispanic Americans suffer from disproportionately high rates of obesity and are almost twice as likely to develop diabetes as whites. For the future health of all Americans, the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease urges candidates to continue discussing policies to rid our nation of these incredibly deadly and costly illnesses."
Chronic diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease, are the number one cause of death and leading driver of rising health care costs in America. They account for seven out of 10 deaths and 75 percent of every health care dollar spent in the U.S. These are conditions that, with proper early intervention, diet, and exercise, could be prevented, delayed, or minimized. More than 130 million Americans today have a chronic disease.
On Sept. 25, the PFCD issued a five-part policy platform called "Ideas for Change," which outlines the need for improvement in chronic disease prevention, detection, and management, and provides recommendations for how to address this devastating epidemic. "Ideas for Change" is available on the PFCD Web site at: http://www.fightchronicdisease.org/advocate/platform/index.cfm.
About the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease:
The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) is a national coalition of patients, providers, community organizations, business and labor groups, and health policy experts committed to raising awareness of the number one cause of death, disability, and rising health care costs in the U.S.: chronic disease.
The PFCD's mission is to:
- Challenge policymakers - in particular, the 2008 presidential candidates - to make the issue of chronic disease a top priority and articulate how they will address the issue through their health care proposals
- Educate the public about chronic disease and potential solutions for individuals, communities, and the nation
- Mobilize Americans to call for change in how policymakers, governments, employers, health institutions, and other entities approach chronic disease
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