2020-10-29 OMA Agenda - Board of Trustees

treatment in the wake of the growing evidence that these treatments are evidence-based and medically necessary. OMA Participation in Coalition Efforts Obesity Care Continuum In 2011, The Obesity Society ( TOS ) , American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery ( ASMBS ) , Obesity Action Coalition ( OAC ) and the Obesity Medicine Association ( OMA ) joined forces with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) in founding the Obesity Care Continuum (OCC). With a combined membership of over 150,000 healthcare professionals, researchers, educators and patient advocates, the OCC is dedicated to promoting access to, and coverage of the continuum of care surrounding the treatment of overweight and obesity. Obesity Care Advocacy Network Despite making inroads on expanding obesity treatment coverage, OCC member groups recognized that they needed additional partners and a broader array of constituencies if they were going to have a profound impact on securing patient access to and coverage of comprehensive obesity care. In 2016, the OCC joined with the Endocrine Society, the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists and Novo Nordisk in founding the Obesity Care Advocacy Network (OCAN). Today OCAN has grown to more than a 20 organization-strong coalition whose mission is to unite and align key obesity stakeholders -- and the larger obesity community -- around key ed ucation, policy and legislative efforts in order to elevate obesity on the national agenda. OCAN Advocacy Days On February 27, 2017, OCAN held its first national Advocacy Day -- with 120 attendees visiting more than 150 congressional offices. Since then, OC AN has hosted a number of other advocacy days where OCAN members have educated legislators and congressional staff about both the Treat and Reduce Obesity Act (TROA) and Obesity Care Week (OCW). TROA will provide Medicare beneficiaries and their health care providers with meaningful tools to treat obesity by improving access to weight management counseling and allowing for coverage of FDA-approved therapeutics for chronic weight management. As part of these advocacy days, OCAN has developed issue briefs and analytical papers that demonstrate the need for passage of TROA – leading to more than 150 members of Congress cosponsoring the Treat and Reduce Obesity Act to date in the 116th Congress. To learn more about how you can participate in future OCAN Advocacy Days, please contact OCAN Washington Coordinator Chris Gallagher.

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