Innovations - IHRSA

| IHRSA Report | In Brief
IHRSA
Continues
Campaign
for a
Healthier
America
82 Club Business International | APRIL 2010 | www.ihrsa.org
Early 2009 set in motion a shift in Washington politics: for the first time
in more than 16 years, the passage of major healthcare reform legislation
seemed possible. As the ensuing political battles raged on, a new
movement in the fitness industry was born: the Campaign for a
Healthier America.
IHRSA started the Campaign for a Healthier America, a national grassroots
project, with the goal of bringing together fitness enthusiasts to make healthy
lifestyles a priority for all Americans. The goals of the Campaign are part of
IHRSA’s Vision for a Healthier America, which is based on the fundamental idea
that any effort to rebuild America’s health and redesign the healthcare system
must include physical activity as a core component of prevention and health
promotion. The Vision is also a recognition that, while the health club industry
offers a major solution to America’s physical inactivity epidemic, we cannot work
alone. As such, the Vision seeks to unite fitness professionals with six key groups
to effect change: government, employers, medical professionals, insurance providers,
children, and individuals.
IHRSA initially set out to lead the industry and be a voice in the healthcare
reform debate by engaging government, employers, and individuals. Within the
industry, fitness professionals joined the grassroots project in a number of ways.
At last year’s IHRSA International Convention & Trade Show in San Francisco,
nearly 100 people recorded video messages for the Campaign. In May, fitness
professionals traveled to Washington, D.C., for IHRSA’s Summit for a Healthier
America to meet with their members of Congress on Capitol Hill to discuss
healthcare reform legislation.
Throughout the year, people in the industry and hundreds of club members
across the country spoke out by sending messages to Congress and the White
House, expressing their support for common-sense solutions to motivate
Americans to become physically active. Hundreds of individuals also
interacted with the Campaign on social media networks, such as
Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.
Earlier this year, the effort to pass reform legislation in Congress
hit some major stumbling blocks. In spite of this, the Campaign is
moving forward. “We’ve seen that the need for cost-effective legislative
solutions that get to the root of the problem are gaining support,”
says Helen Durkin, executive vice president of IHRSA’s public policy
team. “The Campaign is helping to bring together and educate key
audiences about the power of exercise, along with its health and
economic benefits for the country.”
Next month, IHRSA will conduct its 8th Annual Summit for a
Healthier America in the nation’s capital. At this meeting, the most
innovative minds in the health club industry will convene for a national discussion
about how clubs can make a positive difference in the future of America’s health
while improving the industry’s bottom line.
The Campaign will continue its grassroots outreach to Congress in support of
policies that encourage Americans to be more active. That will include a new
piece of legislation—which is expected to be introduced this spring—that takes a
comprehensive approach to solving the nation’s obesity crisis. The Campaign will
also be supporting the launch of the National Physical Activity Plan, which will
occur during the week of May 3rd, coinciding with IHRSA’s Get Active America!
program and the IHRSA Summit for a Healthier America. As always, the Campaign
will continue to engage fitness professionals and consumers on Twitter,
Facebook, and YouTube.
The American Council on Exercise (ACE), CYBEX, the National Academy of
Sports Medicine (NASM), and SPRI are sponsors of the Campaign for a Healthier
America. —|
To learn more about the Campaign for a Healthier America and to become a part of this national
.org grassroots project, visit www.ihrsa.org/campaign.