Experts, leaders of nonprofit, private sectors join together to get America moving, as they observe Launch Day for the United States’ first National Physical Activity Plan. The product of a public/private partnership, the plan is a roadmap of policies to help all Americans enjoy the health benefits of physical activity.

The vision is that all Americans are physically active and live, work, and play in environments that facilitate regular physical activity. The Plan is an ongoing collaboration of scores of nonprofit organizations, corporations and public agencies serving as partners, affiliates and sponsors.

The United States has made important progress in establishing physical activity as a public health priority. Nonetheless, there has been very little success in increasing physical activity at the population level.

A comprehensive plan for promoting physical activity in the American population would provide the framework to support a broad and comprehensive national effort to increase physical activity throughout the nation. 

National plans have led to considerable success in other health domains. The current prevalence of and costs related to chronic disease, including obesity, make it dramatically evident that the time has come for the US to adopt a National Plan for Physical Activity as many other nations have already done.

The schedule for the launch is as follows: 

Monday, May 3, 2010
9:30 – 10:30 am – News Conference
National Press Club, 529 14th St NW, Washington, DC (Holeman Lounge)
 
1:00 – 2:00 pm – Senate briefing sponsored by Sen Tom Harkin (D-IA)
Capitol Visitor Center, Room 210
 
3:00 – 4:00 pm – House of Representatives briefing sponsored by Rep Ron Kind (D-WI)
Cannon Building, Room 121
 
WHO
Russell Pate, PhD, FACSM (Fellow, American College of Sports Medicine)
University of South Carolina
Chair, National Physical Activity Plan
 
Barry Ford
United States Tennis Association
President, National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity
 
Shellie Pfohl
Executive Director, President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
 
Nancy Brown
CEO, American Heart Association
 
Robert E. Sallis, MD, FACSM
Chair, Exercise is Medicine Task Force
 
Meb Keflezighi (Congressional briefings)
American marathoner; Olympic medalist; winner, 2009 New York Marathon

The Plan will focus on eight key areas, including public health, business and industry, education, health care, mass media, parks and recreation and sports, transportation and urban design/community planning, and volunteer/nonprofit organizations. For details, go to www.physicalactivityplan.org.

[Source: ACSM]