[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 2464]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




          NATIONAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS COACH RECOGNITION WEEK

  (Mr. PAYNE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I am glad to join my colleague, Congressman 
Markwayne Mullin today in introducing a resolution designating the week 
of February 13 as National Health and Wellness Coach Recognition Week.
  Lifestyle-related chronic diseases are causing a health crisis in 
this country. Chronic diseases are the leading cause of preventable 
deaths and disabilities, and they cost the U.S. economy more than $1 
trillion per year.
  This crisis is so severe that the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention has deemed chronic disease to be ``the public health 
challenge of the 21st century.''
  We can reduce lifestyle-related chronic disease and end this crisis, 
but that means improving and sustaining health-related behaviors. That 
is where the health coaches come in. They step in to fill the gap 
between healthcare provider recommendations and sustainable lifestyle 
changes. By helping to improve individual health and wellness, health 
coaches get to the root of this Nation's health crisis.
  I want to give my deepest thanks to the health and wellness coaches 
who are making the people of this Nation healthier. We should all 
support them in their efforts.

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