BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2384
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 18, 2006
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HEALTH
Wilma Chan, Chair
AB 2384 (Leno) - As Introduced: February 23, 2006
SUBJECT : Nutrition: Health Food Purchase Pilot Program.
SUMMARY : Establishes a "Healthy Food Purchase" pilot program
(pilot program) to increase the sale and purchase of fresh
fruits and vegetables in low-income communities. Specifically,
this bill :
1)Requires the Department of Health Services (DHS) to design the
pilot program with the following components:
a) Strategies aimed at small grocers in targeted low-income
neighborhoods to increase the offerings of fresh fruits and
vegetables in those communities. Requires DHS to provide
technical assistance, as specified; and,
b) Strategies aimed at food stamp recipients to increase
their purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables by making
those products more affordable, including the development
and implementation of financial incentives. Requires DHS
to seek any necessary federal government approvals to allow
use of the Food Stamp Electronic Benefits Card, as
specified.
2)Requires DHS to seek all necessary approvals to establish the
pilot program, and apply for available federal matching funds
to fund the pilot program.
3) Requires DHS to develop a process for evaluating the
effectiveness of the program, and shall make recommendations
to the Legislature regarding the possible expansion of the
pilot program.
4) Makes legislative findings and declarations on the importance
of eating healthy and making available fresh fruits and
vegetables.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires DHS to establish and implement, to the extent funds
other than state general funds are available, a "5 A Day - For
Better Health" program to promote public awareness of the need
to increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables as part
of a low-fat, high-fiber diet in order to improve health and
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prevent major chronic diseases, including diet-related
cancers.
2)Establishes the California Fresh Start Pilot Program within
the State Department of Education (DOE), to be administered by
DOE in consultation with the Department of Food and
Agriculture and DHS, to promote the consumption of fresh
fruits and vegetables by school age children.
3)Establishes the Women, Infants and Children as a nutrition
program that helps pregnant women, new mothers and young
children eat well and stay healthy through the use of special
checks to buy healthy foods and provides nutritional
counseling and support to mothers of young children and
resources on breastfeeding and referrals to health coverage
programs.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)PURPOSE OF THIS BILL . According to the California Food Policy
Advocates, the sponsor of this bill, AB 2384 strengthens
California's efforts to prevent obesity by increasing access
to fresh fruit and vegetables in low-income communities where
fruit and vegetables typically are unavailable or costly. It
states that there is currently no state law or policy aimed at
increasing the availability of fruit and vegetables in
low-income neighborhoods. California, like the other states,
has a growing obesity problem, where approximately 60% of our
adults and over 25% of our children are obese or overweight.
The consequences of obesity are devastating to individuals,
characteristically involving diabetes, hypertension, heart
disease, cancer and other debilitating disease. Physicians,
nutritionists and other experts recognize the importance of a
diet rich in fruit and vegetables as one key strategy in
preventing obesity. Unfortunately, as countless studies
document, residents of low-income neighborhoods generally lack
access to fruit and vegetables.
2)OBESITY . According to the federal Health and Human Services
Department, 64% of Americans are overweight or obese. Obesity
is considered a risk factor for a number of diseases,
including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. The
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a
study in 2004 that found that poor diet and inactivity was
linked to 111,909 deaths in the United States in 2000.
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Results from the 1999-2002 National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey (NHANES) indicate that 16% of -children and
adolescents ages six to nine years are overweight. This
represents a 45% increase from the overweight estimates
obtained from NHANES III (1988-94). According to a national
study of costs attributed to being overweight and/or obese,
medical expenses accounted for 9.1% of total U.S. medical
expenditures in 1998 and may have reached as high as $78.5
billion ($92.6 billion in 2002 dollars). Obesity and being
overweight are chronic conditions, and result from a variety
of factors including behavior, environment, and genetics. The
two factors that play the largest roles in obesity are
behavior and environment, which are also considered the best
areas for prevention and treatment. According to the
California Center for Public Health Advocacy (CCPHA), the
numbers of overweight and inactive children have reached an
all-time high in California. CCPHA found that statewide,
approximately 27% of children are overweight and 40% are
unfit.
3)GOVERNOR'S OBESITY INITIATIVE . The Governor's 2006-2007
budget includes a $6 million General Fund proposal to support
a comprehensive obesity prevention program. A goal of the
proposal is to support healthy school and workplace
environments to promote physical activity and healthy eating.
The proposed funding will also support Medi-Cal managed care
efforts to increase obesity-related screening and counseling
and provide referral and treatment for overweight and
at-risk-for-overweight children.
4)CALIFORNIA OBESITY PREVENTION INITIATIVE (COPI) . COPI,
established within DHS, is tasked with promoting physical
activity and healthy eating, addressing the societal,
technological, and environmental influences on obesity to
reduce the prevalence of obesity and its associated health
risks among Californians. COPI's Website indicates that its
long term goals include reducing the life-long complications
of childhood overweight and obesity, and their associated
adverse health outcomes, by intervening with children and
youth who are high risk; addressing the disparities in obesity
prevalence and treatment for underserved and vulnerable
populations in California, especially for children and youth;
and creating environments that support healthy eating and
physical activity for all Californians, particularly for
children and youth.
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5)RELATED LEGISLATION . SB 1329 (Alquist), pending in the Senate
Health Committee, would require the Department of Housing and
Community Development, in partnership with DHS, to establish
the "Healthy Food Retailing Initiative" to provide residents
of underserved communities with retail markets that would
offer healthy, high quality, and affordable food.
6)POLICY COMMENTS .
a) Pilot Program . The committee may wish to amend the bill
to specify the specific number of pilot programs that would
be created as a result of this bill.
b) Evaluation . The committee may wish to amend the bill to
specify the components of the evaluation and when DHS must
make the recommendations to the Legislature.
7)SUPPORT . Supporters indicate this bill is a solution to the
growing obesity problem. They state that there is a growing
need to address the obesity problem among low-income
communities because these communities often lack access to
affordable fresh fruits and vegetables.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Food Policy Advocates (sponsor)
Alameda County Community Food Bank
California Catholic Conference
California Center for Public Health Advocacy
California Chiropractic Association
California Food and Justice Coalition
California Hunger Action Coalition
California Independent Grocers Association
Central Coast Hunger Coalition
City and County of San Francisco
Community Alliance with Family Farmers
Food Bank for Monterey County
Keck Diabetes Prevention Initiative
Latino Coalition for a Healthy California
PolicyLink
Second Harvest Food Bank
Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network
St. Anthony Foundation
Opposition
AB 2384
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None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Rosielyn Pulmano / HEALTH / (916)
319-2097