I 
107TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5412
To establish grants to provide health services for improved nutrition, increased 
physical activity, obesity prevention, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 19, 2002
Mrs. BONO (for herself, Ms. GRANGER, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. 
MEEKS of New York, Mr. LAHOOD, Mr. JOHNSON of Illinois, Mrs. 
LOWEY, Mr. CASTLE, Mr. BLUMENAUER, and Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode 
Island) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Agri-
culture and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined 
by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To establish grants to provide health services for improved 
nutrition, increased physical activity, obesity prevention, 
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Improved Nutrition 
and Physical Activity Act’’ or the ‘‘IMPACT Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) An estimated 61 percent of United States 
adults and 13 percent of children and adolescents 
are overweight or obese. 
(2) The prevalence of obesity and being over-
weight is increasing among all age groups. There are 
twice the number of overweight children and 3 times 
the number of overweight adolescents as there were 
29 years ago. 
(3) An estimated 300,000 deaths a year are as-
sociated with being overweight or obese. 
(4) Obesity and being overweight are associated 
with increased risk for heart disease (the leading 
cause of death), cancer (the second leading cause of 
death), diabetes (the 6th leading cause of death), 
and musculoskeletal disorders. 
(5) Individuals who are obese have a 50 to 100 
percent increased risk of premature death. 
(6) The Healthy People 2010 goals identify 
obesity and being overweight as one of the Nation’s 
leading health problems and include objectives of in-
creasing the proportion of adults who are at a 
healthy weight, reducing the proportion of adults 
who are obese, and reducing the proportion of chil-
dren and adolescents who are overweight or obese.
(7) Another goal of Healthy People 2010 is to 
eliminate health disparities among different seg-
ments of the population. Obesity is a health problem 
that disproportionally impacts medically underserved 
populations. 
(8) The United States Surgeon General’s report 
‘‘A Call To Action’’ lists the treatment and preven-
tion of obesity as a top national priority. 
(9) The estimated direct and indirect annual 
cost 
of 
obesity 
in 
the 
United 
States 
is 
$117,000,000,000, which exceeds the cost of to-
bacco-related illnesses and appears to be rising dra-
matically. 
(10) Weight control programs should promote a 
healthy lifestyle including regular physical activity 
and healthy eating, as consistently discussed and 
identified in a variety of public and private con-
sensus documents, including ‘‘A Call to Action’’ and 
other documents prepared by the Department of 
Health and Human Services and other agencies. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) OBESE.—The term ‘‘obese’’ means an adult 
with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 kg/m2 or 
greater.
(2) OVERWEIGHT.—The term ‘‘overweight’’ 
means an adult with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 
25 to 29.9 kg/m2 and a child or adolescent with a 
BMI at or above the 95th percentile on the revised 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention growth 
charts. 
(3) SECRETARY.—Unless otherwise indicated, 
term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services. 
TITLE I—TRAINING GRANTS 
SEC. 101. GRANTS TO PROVIDE TRAINING FOR HEALTH 
PROFESSION STUDENTS. 
Section 747(c)(3) of title VII of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 293k(c)(3)) is amended by striking 
‘‘and victims of domestic violence’’ and inserting ‘‘victims 
of domestic violence, and individuals (including children) 
who are overweight or obese (as such terms are defined 
in section 3 of the Improved Nutrition and Physical Activ-
ity Act) and at risk for related, serious and chronic med-
ical conditions’’. 
SEC. 102. GRANTS TO PROVIDE TRAINING FOR HEALTH 
PROFESSIONALS. 
Section 399Z of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 280h–3) is amended by striking subsection (b) and 
inserting the following:
‘‘(b) GRANTS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may award 
grants to qualified entities to train primary care 
physicians and other licensed or certified health pro-
fessionals on how to identify, treat, and prevent obe-
sity and aid individuals who are overweight (as such 
term is defined in section 3 of the Improved Nutri-
tion and Physical Activity Act). 
‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—An entity that desires a 
grant under this subsection shall submit an applica-
tion at such time, in such form, and containing such 
information as the Secretary may require, including 
a plan for the use of funds that may be awarded and 
an evaluation of the training that will be provided. 
‘‘(3) USE OF FUNDS.—An entity that receives 
a grant under this subsection shall use the funds 
made available through such grant to—
‘‘(A) conduct educational conferences, in-
cluding Internet-based courses and telecon-
ferences, on—
‘‘(i) how to treat and prevent obesity 
and being overweight using nutritional 
counseling, methods to increase physical 
activity, pharmacological therapies, motiva-
tional counseling to promote positive
changes in health behaviors and to assist 
patients in identifying potential barriers to 
adhering to medical recommendations, and 
other proven interventions; 
‘‘(ii) how to discuss varied strategies 
to promote positive behavior change and 
healthy lifestyles to avoid obesity, being 
overweight, and other eating disorders; 
‘‘(iii) how to identify overweight and 
obese patients and those who are at risk 
for obesity and being overweight and there-
fore at risk for related serious and chronic 
medical conditions; 
‘‘(iv) how to conduct a comprehensive 
assessment of individual and familial 
health risk factors, such as poor nutri-
tional status, physical inactivity, and per-
sonal and family history of obesity and re-
lated serious and chronic medical condi-
tions; and 
‘‘(v) how to educate patients and their 
families about effective strategies to im-
prove dietary habits and establish appro-
priate levels of physical activity;