Health Care
PREVENTION IS WORTH ITS WEIGHT
By Lieutenant Governor André Bauer
At a time when the cost of healthcare due to chronic disease is threatening the
personal and financial well being of 4 million South Carolinians, over 300 million
Americans, and our national economy, there’s something we can all do to stave off
further damage: adopt a healthy lifestyle.
Research shows that chronic conditions (and leading killers) such as heart disease,
high blood pressure and diabetes largely represent the cumulative effects of the
small, daily decisions that affect our health — taking the elevator rather than
walking, overindulging in sweets, continuing to smoke.
Simple changes in daily habits can radically alter the course of a life. If we undertake
them together, we will transform the future for South Carolinians by minimizing
collateral damage to our health and pocketbooks. That's why the Lieutenant Governor's
Office on Aging has held more than two dozen wellness events across our state over
the past few years: To emphasize that personal responsibility, making good lifestyle
decisions, is the keystone to good health.
It is no secret that we live longer today thanks to better health protections where
we work and play, and dramatically improved healthcare. However, quality of life
is heavily compromised in our later years by chronic disease and degenerative illnesses.
Currently, 80% of older Americans are living with at least one chronic condition,
and half have two or more. Chronic diseases exact years of pain, disability, and
loss of function and independence, ultimately leading to early death.
These years of needless suffering are why two-thirds of current health care costs
go to treat chronic illnesses. Almost 95% of healthcare expenditures for older Americans
are due to chronic diseases. This is an unsupportable situation.
To put the cost issue in perspective, a private room in a nursing home in South
Carolina averages almost $60,000 a year. The average annual South Carolina household
income is less than $40,000. Put another way, it's cheaper to send a child to college
for four years than to get residential nursing care for an ailing parent for just
one year.
The top-three causes of death for all ages today — heart disease, cancer, and stroke
— are often preventable, and the impact of personal choice on mortality is sadly
transparent. In 2000, just three behaviors — smoking, poor diet, and physical inactivity
— were responsible for 35% of deaths in the United States. Fortunately, these are
statistics we can change.
At the State of Our Health forum on September 16th, healthcare leaders from across
the state convened to discuss ways in which to reduce chronic disease and its devastating
impact. I applaud their efforts to marshal our state's healthcare system around
this critical cause.
Yet the decision is ultimately personal. Research shows that our healthy choices
— regular exercise, a healthy diet, smoke-free lifestyle and preventive health screenings
— can lower our risk for the leading chronic diseases and will reward us with extended
years of independent living, reduced disability and improved quality of life.
As they say at Nike headquarters, Just do it.
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