II 110th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 651 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES February 15, 2007 Mr. Harkin (for himself and Mrs. Clinton) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To help promote the national recommendation of physical activity to kids, families, and communities across the United States.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Promoting Lifelong Active Communities Every Day Act or the PLAY Every Day Act.

2.

Purpose

The purpose of this Act is to help children, families and communities achieve the national recommendation of 60 minutes of physical activity every day.

3.

Findings

Congress makes the following findings: (1)Health care costs in the United States are rising rapidly. Per capita health spending in the United States is 56 percent higher than the median for countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2)According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, total health care spending in the United States in 2004 was $1,800,000,000,000 and is expected to rise to $3,600,000,000,000 by 2014. Furthermore, chronic disease accounts for approximately 75 percent of health care costs annually. (3)Chief executive officers rank health care costs as their number 1 economic pressure, and McKinsey and Company predicts that by 2008 the health care costs of the Fortune 500 companies will be greater than their net profits, if current trends continue. (4)Since the 1970s, the percentage rate of obesity has more than doubled for preschool children aged 2–5 years and adolescents aged 12–19 years, and it has more than tripled for children aged 6–11 years. (5)The Institute of Medicine reported that in 2004, approximately 9,000,000 children over 6 years of age were obese. (6)The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2000 that only 8 percent of elementary schools, 6.4 percent of middle and junior high schools, and 5.8 percent of senior high schools offer daily physical education or its equivalent for the entire school year for students in all grades of the school. (7)The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2000 that less than 50 percent of all schools offered any intramural activities or physical activity clubs for students. (8)A 2002 survey reported that 61.5 percent of children do not participate in any organized physical activity outside of school hours. (9)The Institute of Medicine reported in Preventing Childhood Obesity (2004) that in 1969, an average of 48 percent of all students walked or bicycled to school. In 1999, only 19 percent of children walked to or from school and 6 percent rode bicycles to school. (10)Between 1977 and 1995, trips made by walking declined by 40 percent for adults while driving trips increased to almost 90 percent of the total. (11)The Institute of Medicine reported that due to vehicular traffic, high crime rates, and lack of sidewalks or open spaces, children often do not have safe places to play outside in many neighborhoods. (12)Currently, many governmental, scientific, and public health agencies recommend that school-age children and adolescents engage in at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity that is developmentally appropriate and enjoyable, and which involves a variety of activities, on most, preferably all, days of the week.

4.

Definition of Secretary

In this Act, the term Secretary means the Secretary of Health and Human Services.