(1) Currently, 64.5 percent of adults in the 
United States, age 20 years and older, are over-
weight and 30.5 percent of them are obese. 
(2) Data from two National Health and Nutri-
tion Examination Surveys show that among adults 
aged 20–74 years the prevalence of obesity increased 
from 15.0 percent in the 1976–1980 survey to 32.9 
percent in the 2003–2004 survey. 
(3) In 2003–04, of children and adolescents 2– 
19 years of age more than 12,500,000 (or 17.1 per-
cent) were overweight, and of adults more than 
66,000,000 (or 32.2 percent) were obese. Almost 5 
percent of adults were extremely obese. 
(4) The percentage of children who are over-
weight has more than doubled, and among adoles-
cents the rates have more than tripled, since 1980 
increasing from 5 percent to 17.1 percent. 
(5) More than 50 percent of adults in the 
United States do not get enough physical activity 
and national data have shown an increase in the cal-
orie consumption of adults. 
(6) The rising rates of obesity portend greater 
disease and health conditions including hypertension, 
high total cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes, coronary 
heart 
disease, 
stroke, 
gallbladder 
disease, 
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osteoporosis, sleep apnea, and respiratory problems, 
and some cancers, such as endometrial, breast, and 
colon cancer. 
(7) Many underlying factors have been linked to 
the increase in obesity, such as increasing portion 
sizes, eating out more often, increased consumption 
of sugar-sweetened drinks, increasing television, 
computer, and electronic gaming time, changing 
labor markets, and fear of crime, which prevents 
outdoor exercise. 
(8) Chronic diseases account for 1.7 million, or 
70 percent, of all deaths in the United States each 
year. Although chronic diseases are among the most 
common and costly health problems, they are also 
among the most preventable. Adopting a healthy 
lifestyle such as eating nutritious foods and engag-
ing in physical activity, can prevent or control the 
devastating effects of these diseases. Although 
chronic diseases are among the most common and 
costly health problems, they are also among the 
most preventable. 
(9) According to the Surgeon General’s Call to 
Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and 
Obesity, the cost of obesity in the United States in 
2000 was more than $117 billion. 
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SEC. 3. REDUCTION IN PREVALENCE OF OBESITY; PRO-
GRAM FOR LIFELONG IMPROVEMENTS IN 
FOOD AND EXERCISE. 
Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 243 et seq.) is amended by inserting after sec-
tion 317T the following section: 
‘‘SEC. 317U. REDUCTION IN PREVALENCE OF OBESITY. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 
the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Pre-
vention, shall carry out a national program to conduct and 
support activities regarding individuals who are over-
weight or obese in order to make progress toward the goal 
of significantly reducing the number of cases of obesity 
among individuals in the United States. 
‘‘(b) CERTAIN ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out sub-
section (a), the Secretary shall (directly or through grants 
or contracts) carry out the following with respect to indi-
viduals who are overweight: 
‘‘(1) Activities to train health professionals to 
recognize that patients are overweight and to rec-
ommend prevention activities regarding such condi-
tion, including educating patients on the relationship 
between such condition and cardiovascular disease, 
diabetes and other health conditions, and on proper 
nutrition and regular physical activities. 
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‘‘(2) Activities to educate the public with re-
spect to the condition of being overweight, including 
the development of a strategy for a public awareness 
campaign. 
‘‘(3) The development and demonstration of 
intervention strategies for use at worksites and in 
community settings such as hospitals and commu-
nity health centers. 
‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For the 
purpose of carrying out this section, there are authorized 
to be appropriated $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, and 
such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 
2011 through 2014.’’. 
Æ 
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