Many U.S. parents seeking help for their child with obesity face challenges accessing the recommended treatment. Leading medical groups advocate for intensive behavioral counseling, requiring 26 hours within a year to teach healthier eating and activity habits.
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However, as numerous doctors and parents have noted, these programs are often unavailable, have long waitlists, are not covered by insurance, and require significant time commitments.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revealed that fewer than 1% of the nearly 15 million children with obesity receive such structured care, Reuters reported.
Efforts to expand insurance coverage have stalled. "The coverage for these programs was never good, and we're not seeing any movement toward improvement," said Dr. Joseph Skelton, a professor of pediatrics at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.
Obesity rates among U.S. children have climbed from 5% in 1980 to nearly 20% today, the report noted, citing CDC data.
While Novo Nordisk A/S's (NYSE:NVO) Wegovy offers an effective weight-loss solution for adults and adolescents, there is concern about its long-term effects on children's development.
Despite these concerns, demand for Wegovy remains high, with at least 25,000 first-time prescriptions dispensed weekly to adults.
Changing habits instead of medication is the preferred approach for some families. The report cited Medina's 15-year-old daughter, Jelainie, who enrolled in a healthy weight program at Holyoke Health Center. However, the program has a four-month waitlist, and state Medicaid partially covers participation.
At Stanford Medicine Children's Health, Dr. Thomas Robinson emphasized that reliance solely on drugs could lead to nutritional deficiencies or eating disorders.
The report further noted that Stanford's program teaches families to categorize foods into "red-light" (to be eaten sparingly), "yellow-light," and "green-light" (to be consumed freely) foods, though it costs $3,500 and is not covered by insurance.
Efforts to improve insurance coverage for obesity counseling face hurdles. The American Medical Association (AMA) recently rejected a request for a dedicated medical code for the 26-hour counseling program, which would help providers bill for services, per the report.
The CDC stressed the need for equitable access to both obesity medications and lifestyle treatments to support children's health.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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