Nancy Brown and Bruce D. Broussard
CEO, American Heart Association, and President and CEO, Humana, Inc.
What is the greatest threat to the American workforce? Is it rising education costs, workforce training, lack of available IT talent or trade policy concerns? While those are all significant problems, the largest threat is one of our own making: chronic disease.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says chronic diseases are the leading cause of death and disability in our country. The U.S. spends more on healthcare than any other country, yet we are far from achieving optimal health across our population. Nearly 117 million Americans live with one or more chronic conditions. Prevention is critical to changing this dynamic, particularly by addressing risk factors for chronic illnesses, and American employers can play a crucial role in achieving this.