Zachary J. Ward

Three Interventions That Reduce Childhood Obesity Are Projected To Save More Than They Cost To Implement

Policy makers seeking to reduce childhood obesity must prioritize investment in treatment and primary prevention. We estimated the cost-effectiveness of seven interventions high on the obesity policy agenda: a sugar-sweetened beverage excise tax; elimination of the tax subsidy for advertising unhealthy food to children; restaurant menu calorie labeling; nutrition standards for school meals; nutrition standards for all other food and beverages sold in schools; improved early care and education; and increased access to adolescent bariatric surgery. We used systematic reviews and a microsimulation model of national implementation of the interventions over the period 2015-25 to estimate their impact on obesity prevalence and their cost-effectiveness for reducing the body mass index of individuals. In our model, three of the seven interventions--excise tax, elimination of the tax deduction, and nutrition standards for food and beverages sold in schools outside of meals--saved more in health care costs than they cost to implement. Each of the three interventions prevented 129,000-576,000 cases of childhood obesity in 2025. Adolescent bariatric surgery had a negligible impact on obesity prevalence. Our results highlight the importance of primary prevention for policy makers aiming to reduce childhood obesity.

Cost Effectiveness of a Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Excise Tax in the U.S.

INTRODUCTION Reducing sugar-sweetened beverage consumption through taxation is a promising public health response to the obesity epidemic in the U.S. This study quantifies the expected health and economic benefits of a national sugar-sweetened beverage excise tax of

Cost Effectiveness of Childhood Obesity Interventions Evidence and Methods for CHOICES

0.01/ounce over 10 years. METHODS A cohort model was used to simulate the impact of the tax on BMI. Assuming ongoing implementation and effect maintenance, quality-adjusted life-years gained and disability-adjusted life-years and healthcare costs averted were estimated over the 2015-2025 period for the 2015 U.S. POPULATION Costs and health gains were discounted at 3% annually. Data were analyzed in 2014. RESULTS Implementing the tax nationally would cost

Simulation of Growth Trajectories of Childhood Obesity into Adulthood

51 million in the first year. The tax would reduce sugar-sweetened beverage consumption by 20% and mean BMI by 0.16 (95% uncertainty interval [UI]=0.06, 0.37) units among youth and 0.08 (95% UI=0.03, 0.20) units among adults in the second year for a cost of

Gastric adenocarcinoma screening and prevention in the era of new biomarker and endoscopic technologies: a cost-effectiveness analysis

3.16 (95% UI=

Redrawing the US Obesity Landscape: Bias- Corrected Estimates of State-Specific Adult Obesity Prevalence

1.24,

Chronic Conditions and Utility-Based Health-Related Quality of Life in Adult Childhood Cancer Survivors

8.14) per BMI unit reduced. From 2015 to 2025, the policy would avert 101,000 disability-adjusted life-years (95% UI=34,800, 249,000); gain 871,000 quality-adjusted life-years (95% UI=342,000, 2,030,000); and result in

BMI and Healthcare Cost Impact of Eliminating Tax Subsidy for Advertising Unhealthy Food to Youth.

23.6 billion (95% UI=

Modeling the Cost Effectiveness of Child Care Policy Changes in the U.S.

9.33 billion,

Using cost-effectiveness analysis to prioritize policy and programmatic approaches to physical activity promotion and obesity prevention in childhood.

54.9 billion) in healthcare cost savings. The tax would generate