KAPOLEI, Hawaii and
TAMPA, Fla., Nov. 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- 'Ohana Health
Plan, Inc., a WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG) company,
recently sponsored the Hawaii 5210
Let's Go! Program assemblies and installed a new water bottle
filling station at Haiku Elementary School in Maui to help promote active living and healthy
eating in Hawaii schools,
In Hawaii, 26 percent of
children ages 10 to 17 are considered overweight or obese. This is
mostly a result of an unhealthy diet and lack of exercise. In fact,
children in the U.S. have about five to seven hours of screen time
a day, which includes engaging in television, smart phones, and
video games, and this number continues to rise.
'Ohana Health Plan has installed water stations and distributed
water bottles at schools in Hawaii
throughout the past year to emphasize the importance of staying
hydrated all day long. Consuming water can help manage calories,
energize muscles, moisturize skin, maintain good kidney health and
more.
During the assemblies, the Hawaii 5210 team led fun, interactive health
education activities with both students and staff, to promote
exercise through dance. In order to effectively boost the students'
health, the program supports healthy lifestyles including eating
five fruits and vegetables a day, two hours or less of screen time,
having at least one hour of outdoor play, and no sugary drinks.
"When developing healthy habits, it's important to start early,"
said Dr. Edward Fess, senior medical
director for 'Ohana Health Plan. "That's why we're proud to support
the Hawaii 5210 program because
the health education it provides to elementary school students
instills a commitment to healthy eating and exercise that will last
a lifetime."
The Hawaii 5210 initiative is a
joint project between the University of
Hawaii and the Department of Education. The initiative works
to optimize awareness and action among Hawaii's children and their families.
"The water bottle filling stations help the schools to create
healthy environments that promote water consumption by students and
school staff throughout the school day," said Dr. May Okihiro, pediatrician at the University of Hawaii, John
A. Burns School of Medicine and director of HICORE. "We
think these environmental changes, along with health education and
healthy beverage policies that we're also promoting, will go a long
way to support healthier choices."
For more information about the Hawaii 5210 program, visit
www.hawaii5210.com.
About 'Ohana Health Plan
'Ohana Health Plan has more than 250 employees in Hawaii and serves approximately 53,000 members
through its offices in Kapolei,
Honolulu, Hilo and Kahului. 'Ohana Health Plan has been able to
take WellCare's national experience and develop an 'Ohana Health
Plan care model that addresses local members' health care and
health coordination needs. As of Sept. 30,
2017, 'Ohana Health Plan serves approximately 47,000
Medicaid members, 5,000 Medicare Advantage members, and 1,000
Medicare Prescription Drug Plan (PDP) members in Hawaii. For more information about 'Ohana
Health Plan, please visit the company's website at
www.ohanahealthplan.com.
About WellCare Health Plans, Inc.
Headquartered in Tampa, Fla.,
WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG) focuses exclusively on
providing government-sponsored managed care services, primarily
through Medicaid, Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug
Plans, to families, children, seniors and individuals with complex
medical needs. The company serves approximately 4.3 million members
nationwide as of Sept. 30, 2017. For
more information about WellCare, please visit the company's website
at www.wellcare.com or view the company's videos at
www.youtube.com/user/WellCareHealthPlan.
About Hawaii 5210
The Hawaii 5210 "Let's Go!"
initiative promotes healthy living to prevent childhood obesity in
Hawaii through a coordinated,
collaborative, locally relevant health education campaign. The
5-2-1-0 slogan names the healthy living message by encouraging
behaviors associated with healthy weight in children. Hawaii 5210 is based at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of
Medicine Department of Pediatrics and is led by HICORE, the Hawaii
Initiative for Childhood Obesity Research and Education. To learn
more, visit www.hawaii5210.com.
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SOURCE WellCare Health Plans, Inc.