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Governor Haley Barbour introduced his Healthy Mississippi initiative to several hundred people who attended the Healthy Mississippi Summit on June 15.

Alarmed by Mississippi's reputation for leading the nation in obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease, Gov. Haley Barbour introduced plans to help Mississippians adopt healthier lifestyles at a Healthy Mississippi Summit on June 15. Orchestrated by Barbour, the seminar addressed challenges and opportunities to promote better health to children in schools as well as to seniors in communities and adults in workplaces throughout the state. He urged seminar attendees to turn instinct into action.

"We instinctively know the importance of healthier lifestyles: lower costs, more job creation, and a longer and better quality of life for all Mississippians, especially minority populations who are more at risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure," he said.

Shortly after taking office, Barbour was greeted with Mississippi's first healthcare crisis: lawsuit abuse. He emerged victorious from that battle with what The Wall Street Journal heralded as the most comprehensive tort reform legislation in the country to end lawsuit abuse.

The governor was prepared to announce his plans to ease the burden of chronic diseases in Mississippi when the worse natural disaster in American history, Hurricane Katrina, hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, 2005. Ten months later, bolstered with the confidence that the Coast will come back "bigger and better than ever," Barbour was ready to confront the challenge of reforming the health of fellow Mississippians.

Three factors make up the governor's health program: children, minorities and state employees.

The formula for a healthier Mississippi begins with its children. Barbour supports a school curriculum that requires more physical activity for students and healthier products in school vending machines.

"Let students reach for fruit juice or milk instead of a sugar-laden soft drink. We also must work to be sure school cafeterias serve healthier meals and prepare them appropriately," said Barbour.

Barbour believes that children will have more energy and more interest in learning if every school has a workable wellness plan. These initiatives would feature low-cost programs to help teachers and kids eat right, exercise, and stay away from tobacco and drugs.

"I've proposed a comprehensive and constitutional 'Healthy Kids' initiative that fights youth smoking and drug use by putting the $20 million per year that has been unconstitutionally diverted to the Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi to new and better purposes," said Barbour, who added that he plans to include the Healthy Kids program in his proposed budget this fall.

In his Healthy Kids program, Barbour suggests the Mississippi Legislature appropriate the diverted $20 million out of the Health Care Expendable Fund for the following purposes: expansion of the school nurse program; maintenance of anti-tobacco education and advertising; expansion of cancer research, screening, education and treatment at the University of Mississippi Medical Center's Cancer Institute; increasing the state's support for the fight against illegal drugs; and ensuring annual accountability of all funds to assess the effectiveness of the programs.
Minorities represent the second factor in Barbour's efforts to reform Mississippians' health. Studies show the state's minority citizens are prone to more than their share of chronic diseases. According to a survey by the Mississippi State Department of Health, minorities frequently fail to receive routine medical checkups for early detection of diseases, lack access to healthcare and are often impoverished. These factors make them more at risk for diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

Barbour believes that partnering with community leaders in faith-based organizations can make a difference in conveying his healthy lifestyle message to minorities. Currently, 25 churches are involved in a pilot project where they serve as "health centers" that test for diabetes and high blood pressure and organize exercise and wellness programs for members in addition to offering classes on diet and healthier ways to cook.

State employees are the third target group in the governor's Healthy Mississippi program. Barbour cited unhealthy lifestyles as a major contributor to higher health insurance costs and drops in productivity in businesses all over the state. Taking a proactive approach to improve that situation, the governor created a "wellness benefit" in the state employee insurance plan for the 190,000 Mississippians who depend upon it.

Barbour made healthy changes at his own workplace by updating the menu in the Woolfolk Building cafeteria. On June 22, he held a special event in the cafeteria where he distributed the Know Your Numbers brochure (featuring the proper cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar and body mass index numbers) to state employees.

During the event, free healthy food samples were given away to promote the items offered in the cafeteria's new Healthy Choice section. A health fair was held where maps of walking routes in the Woolfolk Building were issued. As a result, monthly health-related activities are being planned for employees in Barbour's workplace. Employees are teaming up to spend their breaks walking the routines listed on the map for their building.

Maps of the walking routes found in several other state buildings will soon be distributed to the employees who work there. Copies of the Know Your Numbers brochure are being circulated to state employees, at health fairs and to the 25 Healthy Mississippi pilot churches throughout the state.

Barbour plans to continue leading by example to make the necessary personal choices that result in a healthier lifestyle.

"I encourage Mississippians ... every family, every community, every business, every school, every person ... to make these choices, too," he said. "To exercise appropriately, eat properly and not to use tobacco or illegal drugs; that is, to live healthy. You'll live longer and better."

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