Government officials are considering providing funding to citizens who need weight-loss surgeries to decrease obesity rates. According to the state Senate, Mississippi has the highest obesity rate in the nation. The idea of funding these surgeries began when the Mississippi House and Senate investigated the State Board of Health and the medical situation in Mississippi, Sen. Steve Holland said.
“There was a movement that started in August to fully review the State Board of Health,” Holland said. “It was a Senate initiative that eventually made its way to the House of Representatives.”
The review showed the severity of flaws in Mississippi’s health care program is currently in, he said.
“The Senate did a review of the Board of Health and saw things that needed to be changed,” Holland said.
The review instigated a series of hearings which determined what would happen to Mississippi’s health care system, he said.
“We had to revamp it no matter what,” he said. “Extensive hearings, even volumes of hearings, determined that the State Board of Health was in a state of disarray with problems ranging from West Nile, infant mortality and obesity,” Holland said.
Weight-loss procedures range from lap band reduction to gastric bypass surgery.
“We are currently in the largest per-capita percent of our citizens that are morbidly obese,” Holland said.
A Senate press release states that more than 40 states have an obesity clause in their Medicaid programs.
Holland said the Senate has taken the first big step in solving the state’s obesity problem by ordering an investigation in which Medicaid would review the benefits of state-funded weight-loss procedures.
“We just mandated that the division of Medicaid would bring us back a study on obesity as well as the economic effects of possibly funding weight-loss surgeries,” Holland said.
Although state-funded weight-loss surgeries will be considered soon, the Senate’s current mission is to investigate the state’s high rate of obesity and its economic effects, Holland said.
“If we implement this new funding, we may not only be able to save lives, but also serious amounts of money will be devoted to Medicaid for obesity related diabetes, congestive heart failure, and such,” Holland said.
Mississippi State students expressed varied viewpoints on the development.
Junior kinesiology major Charlie Estes expressed concern for the idea of state-funded weight-loss surgeries. He said lifestyle habits are hard to change, no matter how well surgery may work.
“Simply receiving a free surgery can’t change bad eating habits,” Estes said.
He said a line should be drawn between overweight citizens who are looking for an easy way out and those who have a clinically-proven problem, related to genetics or disease.
Sophomore political science major Lauren Parker said she agrees with Holland. She said she believes the idea of the state helping its residents overcome obesity is what Mississippi is all about.
“Mississippi is known for its hospitality,” Parker said. “I think it is only just that we start to take care of our citizens dealing with health-related issues.”
Parker said obesity is difficult to deal with and cannot be solved overnight.
“Sometimes diet and exercise is not enough. In certain cases, surgery is needed,” she said. “In those extreme cases, we need to step up as a state and help those in need.”
According to Holland, Medicaid will complete its study in the fall of 2007 and Congress will then begin to develop its next plan of action.