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Episode 2 - Lifestyle Modification Programs-Do They Work?
Despite the potential benefits of weight loss intervention programs, Peter Salgo, MD, and panelists Maria Lopes, MD, MS; Kari Uusinarkaus, MD, FAAFP, FNLA; Jeffrey D. Dunn, PharmD, MBA; and Yehuda Handelsman, MD, FACP, FACE, FNLA, explain that many barriers affect the outcomes of these programs.
Dr Salgo emphasizes that weight reduction is a crucial part of diabetes care; lifestyle modifications such as losing weight, making dietary changes, and increasing physical activity level are recommended for patients with diabetes. However, Dr Salgo explains that adherence to lifestyle modifications is challenging for many patients.
Dr Lopes agrees that lifestyle modification and wellness programs work; however, they are successful in only a minority of patients. Dr Uusinarkaus adds that healthcare professionals need to select the right patients for the right programs; ultimately, patients need to be inspired to be responsible for their own health.
Drs Handelsman and Dunn discuss the high costs associated with weight loss intervention programs, and consider what parties should be responsible for program expenses.
Together, the panelists conclude that a stronger governmental and societal approach can help combat the obesity epidemic.
Managed Care Reflections: A Q&A With A. Mark Fendrick, MD, and Michael E. Chernew, PhD
December 2nd 2025To mark the 30th anniversary of The American Journal of Managed Care (AJMC), each issue in 2025 includes a special feature: reflections from a thought leader on what has changed—and what has not—over the past 3 decades and what’s next for managed care. The December issue features a conversation with AJMC Co–Editors in Chief A. Mark Fendrick, MD, director of the Center for Value-Based Insurance Design and a professor at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor; and Michael E. Chernew, PhD, the Leonard D. Schaeffer Professor of Health Care Policy and the director of the Healthcare Markets and Regulation Lab at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts.
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