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The Federal Fat Police: Bill Would Require Government to Track Body Mass of American Children
By Penny Starr (CNSNews.com)
May 13, 2010

First lady Michelle Obama pauses before speaking at an event at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Tuesday, May 11, 2010, in Washington, to discuss the findings of the Childhood Obesity Task Force report. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

A bill introduced this month in Congress would put the federal and state governments in the business of tracking how fat, or skinny, American children are.

States receiving federal grants provided for in the bill would be required to annually track the Body Mass Index of all children ages 2 through 18. The grant-receiving states would be required to mandate that all health care providers in the state determine the Body Mass Index of all their patients in the 2-to-18 age bracket and then report that information to the state government. The state government, in turn, would be required to report the information to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for analysis.

The Healthy Choices Act--introduced by Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.), a member of the House Ways and Means Committee--would establish and fund a wide range of programs and regulations aimed at reducing obesity rates by such means as putting nutritional labels on the front of food products, subsidizing businesses that provide fresh fruits and vegetables, and collecting BMI measurements of patients and counseling those that are overweight or obese.

Section 101 of the bill amends the Public Health Services Act by stating that health care providers must record the Body Mass Index of all children ages 2 through 18. "The provision relates to all children in states that accept grants under the bill," a spokesperson for Rep. Kind told CNSNews.com. "However, it is important to note that no one is forced to come in for a doctor’s visit to get their BMI tested. BMI will be taken at times when the child makes an otherwise scheduled doctor’s visit."

BMI is calculated by taking one’s weight in pounds and height in inches, multiplying that number by one’s height in inches and then multiplying that number by 703. Any number over 24 is considered overweight, with higher numbers resulting in a diagnosis of obese (BMI = [weight / (height x height)] x 703).

To pay for implementing BMI data gathering, Sec. 102 of the bill states that the federal government will give grants to states that meet certain criteria, including having “the capacity to store basic demographic information (including date of birth, gender and geographic area of residence), height, weight, and immunization data for each resident of the state.”

The grants also will pay for personnel and equipment necessary to measure patients’ BMI.

The grants also require that if a child’s BMI is greater than the 95th percentile for the child’s age and gender, the state will provide “information on how to lower BMI and information on state and local obesity prevention programs.”

Rep. Kinder's spokesperson said that any data used to generate a report on the BMI data collected would not include patients’ names.

The bill also requires HHS to share with Congress and other government officials, including the secretaries of education and agriculture, its analysis of the BMI data collected not more than one year after it gathers all of the data from states.

This analysis, the bill states, would attempt to identify obesity trends in regions of the United States and how those trends vary according to gender and socioeconomic status--although the bill does not spell out how socioeconomic status of patients would be determined.

On May 6, the bill was referred to the House subcommittee on Highways and Transit.

Co-sponsors of the bill are Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), Mary Bono Mack (R-Calif.), Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) and Gregorio Sablan (D-Mich.)

At a press conference last week to announce the introduction of the bill, Kind emphasized it would help “busy American families.”

“Making the healthy choice the easy choice for our families is essential to ensuring our quality of life,” Kind said. “I am pleased to work on legislation that helps provide the opportunities that meet the needs of busy American families.”

Viewer Comments

mrsgunnut10 (1 hour ago)

I guess Mom & Dad are just too busy playing golf, bowling, or just laying around the house, while the kids are sucking up everything in sight and in the fridge. I thought, all this time, that our Politicians were over worked and worn out. I mean, look at what they have accomplished for us citizens... Nothing. Except of course put us all in debt for the next 50 years or so, what's a year or two when we are a few Trillion Dollars in debt. Now , all of a sudden, Rep. Kind wants to put our Politicians to work making sure that "your" kids don't get too fat or too skinny, which is something the parents are supposed to be doing. What the hell are they going to think of next?? Wait, don't tell me yet, my wife still has about 5 minutes to go on her "Tanning Booth Time" and we are scheduled to be at the Country Club by 5:30PM. Just don't know how we ever got our four kids through school without the Government's help. Must have done something wrong, I guess.

orawek (2 hours ago)

If they pass it, I think it should be applied to the congress too. Barney Frank has been looking a little chubby lately.

catholic2u222 (3 hours ago)

Can you believe what these people come up with? If we survive this administration without ending up in jail for defying them, wait, wouldn't that be a satisfying way to beat them and keep your dignity too. After all, it seems the inmates have more rights than we have at this point. We could claim to be muslims and get the royal treatment, or else!!! Just a thought. I really am speechless at the excessive intrusion of this administration into our private lives. All because of MONEY!! It's not enough to kill the unborn and old, they have to make sure no one needs medical attention while they are productive.

sirandrew (3 hours ago)

Why stop there? What about condom police to guard against STD. How about toilet paper police to cut down excessive use to conserve paper. Why not have temperature control police to make there sure no cooling below 78 degrees and and no heating above 68 degrees.

marjer (3 hours ago)

Seems to me this busybody has to much time on her hands. God deliver us from debbie do-gooders.

IQ 168 (3 hours ago)

What is sadly ironic about this is that the self consciousness this will cause is what has been laundered out of our society by "political correctness." My father began riding my back about my weight when I was 11 and reached puberty. I learned calorie content of everything I put in my mouth and became acutely aware overweight was in direct correlation to caloric intake. Under PC reference to weight (as well as everything else in the dictionary) became taboo to discuss. Now we've come full circle.

Ruler4You (3 hours ago)

Here's a government that can't control it's own borders or data bases but it's going to "track" the body mass of every child? Sounds like a viable possibility alright.

Winston on Truth (3 hours ago)

What hypocracy coming from the administration of an illicit president when he is a junk food addict and addicted to tobacco. Then Michelle's huge rear should have a tax put on her by the pound! These social justice Marxists must be stopped by We the People.

djmf0521 (5 hours ago)

I have an idea!! Why don't you take the money that you are going to spend tracking how fat the school lunch programs have made our children, and give extra monies to the programs for HEALTHY FOOD!!!! What a concept. If you are going to spend MORE money--fix the problem!!!

nooneofanyimport.wordpress.com (7 hours ago)

Wow. Now I get it. Lefty sites were all lauding how the Task Force on Childhood Obesity recommended voluntary action, not mandates. Isn't that magnanimous? You've filled in the missing puzzle piece--the accompanying legislation which allows them to keep track of EVERY child's BMI???? Stop this ride, I wanna get off.