It’s been a big week for prevention. In addition to the White House announcement on preventive services, this Wednesday CDC Director Thomas Frieden showed strong public support of disease prevention and wellness efforts at the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) annual meeting – calling for a dramatic increase programs and funding for these efforts.

Frieden said yesterday that the American health care system gets an "F" when it comes to life-saving prevention methods and called prevention a “best buy in the health care sector.” He also noted, "It would be very difficult to spend this much money and do worse." Fortunately, prevention provisions in the Affordable Care Act will help us get more bang for our health care buck. One example is the newly-announced HHS regulations that eliminate or lower patient out-of-pocket costs through limits on cost-sharing for preventive services. 

Skeptics often question the cost-savings associated with increased access to preventive services. Screenings aren’t designed to save money—the savings arise from managing disease and preventing it in the first place. This idea is further explored in the recent NPR article, “Health Law Makes Prevention Easier To Come By.”

Once again, I commend Dr. Frieden for his call to action. I encourage the Obama Administration and Congress to appropriate all prevention efforts in PPACA and I encourage everyone to show their support for key prevention initiatives by taking full advantage of all public comment periods.