Childhood Obesity Intervention Cost-Effectiveness Study (CHOICES)

Washington State results

Background

In October 2015, the Department of Health was selected to participate in the CHOICES Learning Collaborative Partnership at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

The goal of this project is to identify which prevention policies and programs will help kids achieve and maintain a healthy weight, while delivering the best results for the dollars invested.

We modeled three different interventions for childhood obesity using state-specific data.

Interventions selected were based on recommendations from the Governor's Council for the Healthiest Next Generation, Governor Inslee's initiative for helping children achieve their highest health potential.

The CHOICES cost-effectiveness analysis examines:

  • Reach: How many and what types of people would be affected by the policy/program?
  • Effect: What the effect of the policy/program would be on health?
  • Cost: What the implementation costs of a policy/program intervention would be and what the potential health care cost savings would be?

The model uses a 10-year timeframe, which allows for individuals to age out of and into the model.

Learn more about the CHOICES project (PDF).