Now is the time for healthcare providers to take a proactive approach to the well-being of their respective communities and target markets. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), signed into law by President Obama on February 17, contains $1 billion for the new Prevention and Wellness Fund. This Fund will make available resources for funding immunization programs; infection prevention programs; and the prevention of 
chronic diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. Based on statistics provided by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 70 million people in the United States (approximately 25 percent of our total population) live with cardiovascular disease. Wellness programs have a direct impact on the prevention of these diseases and will be an important components of any preventative program.
Healthcare providers have historically been hesitant to invest in wellness and fitness centers due to the capital resource requirement and uncertain return on investment. With careful planning and strategic development, these facilities can bring a substantial new revenue stream into the organization. Skeptics may point to the Medical Fitness Association, which reports that in 2008 there were approximately 950 medically based wellness and fitness centers in the United States, with one-third reporting operating losses.
While such risks do exist, investing in wellness facilities and programs that directly address the prevention of chronic disease have the potential for more than satisfactory financial results. If managed with a clear direction, thought and competence, these facilities can provide a financial return far more attractive than the equities market has offered in the recent past. The resources allocated to fight chronic disease will come back tenfold in cost reductions over the long term.
Now is the time to invest in the well-being of our future. We should not wait for another opportunity like the one Congress and President Obama have provided. We need to take advantage of this now.
To quote Krauthammer: “Rationing is not quite as alien to America as we think. We already ration kidneys and hearts for transplant according to survivability criteria, as well as by queuing. A nationalized health insurance system would ration everything from MRIs to intensive care by myriad similar criteria.”
President Obama’s aggressive approach to protect healthcare legislation from Republican filibusters demonstrates the magnitude this ambitious reform package and has come to be called in some circles the nuclear option.