As a longtime women’s health advocate, I applaud the Sun-Times Editorial Board for recognizing that obesity is an urgent health issue with a particular impact on women — both in Illinois and across the country (“Severe obesity is a health crisis Americans can’t ignore” — Sept. 25).
To address this critical public health issue and its many physical, social and financial consequences — particularly for women — we must ensure that everybody has affordable and equitable access to evidence-based obesity care.
Obesity is a chronic, treatable disease that affects 43% of women in Illinois, including 56% of Black and 48% of Hispanic women, according to National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago data collected between 2019-2021. Obesity is linked to more than 200 other chronic health complications, including many that are more likely to affect women, such as breast cancer, polycystic ovarian syndrome and maternal health challenges. Obesity also reduced economic activity in Illinois by $17.6 billion in 2022, and increased health care costs for Illinois employers by $2.1 billion.
Leading medical organizations, including the American Medical Association, have long recognized obesity as a complex disease with causes outside of an individual’s control. Comprehensive obesity care, which includes weight-loss surgery, intensive behavioral therapy, nutrition counseling and medications, is critical to ensuring that women and others living with the disease are able to live their healthiest lives.
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Unfortunately, insurance barriers keep comprehensive obesity care out of reach for many people in Illinois. While Illinois offers coverage for obesity medications to its state employees, coverage is not yet available through the state Medicaid program. Further, just 18% of Illinoisans who receive health insurance through their job have coverage for obesity medications. Medicare also does not cover medications for obesity and places significant limits on coverage for intensive behavioral therapy.
We must work together and call for comprehensive obesity care to be covered by health insurance, just as care for other chronic diseases is covered — it’s only fair.
Millicent Gorham, CEO, Alliance for Women’s Health and Prevention, Washington D.C.
Serious weather woes
The devastation from Hurricane Helene should be seen within the backdrop of global warming. Warm seas generate hurricanes. Warmer seas generate more powerful storms. Warmer air holds more moisture, causing heavier downpours.
For over four decades climate scientists — including Exxon’s own climate scientists — have been virtually unanimous in predicting the warming and disruption from burning fossil fuels and their predictions have proven to be accurate.
Democrats at the national level have passed important legislation to fight global warming but much more could have been accomplished — including world leadership in battling climate change — if not for Republican opposition supported by huge fossil fuel contributions.
Before voting we should weigh all our concerns, most of which pale compared to the destruction coming from an overheating planet. More frequent and severe storms, floods, heat waves, droughts and wildfires are already happening and are on course to worsen. They cost billions of dollars in damage to homes, businesses, infrastructure and agriculture and threaten the biosphere that supports life on our planet.
Richard Barsanti, Western Springs