Harkin Praises HHS for Commitment to Prevention and Wellness

Harkin Praises HHS for Commitment to Prevention and Wellness

WASHINGTON— Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) welcomed today’s announcement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) of a $750 million investment in disease prevention and wellness, funded through the Prevention and Public Health Fund established by the Affordable Care Act.   He is Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, which helped to shape the Affordable Care Act, and the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education.

“One of the best ways to reduce health care costs and improve public health is to keep Americans from developing diseases in the first place,” Harkin said. “This funding will allow communities around the country to take an active role in promoting wellness and healthy living, and help prevent common causes of chronic diseases that burden our health care system and threaten the quality of people’s lives.  I applaud Secretary Sebelius’ commitment to disease prevention and look forward to continuing to work with her to ensure that communities are getting the funding they need.”

Harkin is a longtime champion of prevention and wellness, and successfully advocated for the inclusion of the Prevention and Public Health Fund in the Affordable Care Act.  Aiming to build on the investments made in new health care law, last month Harkin reintroduced the Healthier Lifestyles and Prevention America Act, a comprehensive wellness initiative aimed at promoting healthy living across all sectors of society.

To see how the funding from the Prevention and Public Health Fund is helping to combat chronic disease in communities across the country, including in Harkin’s home state of Iowa, please visit Healthcare.gov for a state by state analysis.