In June 2013, the American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates voted to recognize obesity as a disease state requiring treatment and prevention efforts. A number of other medical societies had sponsored a resolution to support this idea, including the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, the Endocrine Society,
the American College of Cardiology, the American College of Surgeons, and the American Heart Association. The National Institutes of Health had declared obesity a disease in 1998 and the American Obesity Society did so in 2008.
Because the AMA is thought of as the most influential medical association in the country, their statement is expected to have a significant influence on health care policy, through effects on insurers, industry, and lawmakers.
The stated purpose for this decision is to improve research into the causes of obesity, leading to improvement in methods to prevent and treat it, ultimately improving patient health and outcomes. This decision would be expected to improve insurance coverage
and reimbursement to providers for treating individuals with obesity. In addition, this change in public policy by the AMA supports the concept that obesity is a serious disease that requires treatment and also removes the stigma currently associated with obesity (i.e., it is not just a poor lifestyle choice).
