Weight Management Demonstration Project: Healthy Eating and Active Living in TRICARE Households

Lifestyle modification interventions that promote healthful eating habits and physical activity can be effective in producing weight losses of 4% to 9% of initial bodyweight. If maintained, this level of weight loss can reduce hypertension, high blood glucose, and elevated lipids. However, weight losses often plateau after 6 months, and weight regain begins after 12 months. Accordingly, there is interest in interventions, such as Web-based reinforcement and brief counseling to maintain weight loss over time and in the relative cost-effectiveness of program delivery modes.

Most obesity treatment programs focus on outcomes for individuals without assessing population-based cost savings. This study suggests that a broader perspective can help to identify the benefit of weight management in adult populations. Accordingly, this study assessed the cost-effectiveness of a weight management program in a population of adults served by a large health care system-the TRICARE Management Activity (TMA), the agency that manages the TRICARE health care benefits for active-duty service members, retired service members, their families, National Guard/Reserve members, and their families. The annual direct medical costs of overweight/obesity for beneficiaries enrolled in TRICARE Prime are estimated to exceed $1.1 billion. This study investigated the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of methods to deliver a cognitive-behavioral weight loss intervention.