This Campaign Is Working To Get EveryBODY Covered

Obesity is a complicated disease that affects millions of people in the U.S. Even though we have a growing toolbox of medications and interventions to help support weight management and prevent obesity-related complications, many people still cannot access comprehensive or supportive obesity care.

This is especially true for women.

“I've lived with obesity most of my life,” said Michele Tedder, who is a nurse, obesity advocate, and founder of Village Empowerment Solutions. “I would go to my doctor, and they’d say, ‘You need to lose some weight,’ or, ‘You really could push back from the table.’ It was always the same message to move more, eat less, and well, it's your fault.”

Unfortunately, Tedder’s experience is not unique, and it’s not just stigma and judgment from care teams that can impact a person’s ability, or willingness, to access obesity treatments. Currently, the insurance landscape for these interventions is extremely patchy and varies widely based on employment, the type of insurance a person has, and where in the country they are located. Because of this, interventions and medications are often out of reach for many women.

“To put it simply, if you care about women’s health, you must care about obesity too,” said Millicent Gorham, the CEO of the Alliance for Women’s Health and Prevention (AWHP) and convening partner of the EveryBODY Covered campaign. “When comprehensive obesity care is covered by insurance, women have access to the critical care needed to manage their disease, prevent other health impacts – such as conditions like diabetes – and significantly improve their overall well-being.”

While there is still a lot of work to be done, there is a growing movement to bring attention to obesity as a women’s health issue and to advocate for better insurance coverage for treatment and care. One campaign that is focusing on addressing both of these goals is EverBODY Covered.

What is the EveryBODY Covered campaign?

The EveryBODY Covered campaign aims to advance women’s health by advocating for expanded access to comprehensive obesity care.

Led by the AWHP, a nonprofit devoted to amplifying women’s stories to drive policy and close persistent preventive care gaps, the campaign aims to highlight obesity care as a women’s health priority.

“We work with over 30 leading organizations – diverse and dynamic groups representing both patients and providers – united by the belief that expanding coverage reduces disparities and improves health outcomes, especially for women living with obesity,” said Gorham.

The campaign, which launched in 2024 and is supported by Eli Lilly and Company, includes a number of initiatives, such as:

• Educational resources, including fact sheets, a step-by-step advocacy guide, and how to navigate insurance coverage denials.
• Encouraging women to contact their legislators, for example, through a letter-writing campaign in support of specific federal legislation like the Treat and Reduce Obesity Act (TROA).
• Empowering women of all backgrounds to share their personal stories.

Since launching, the campaign has reached several exciting milestones.

“Our advocates have sent over 2,000 letters to federal and state elected officials in support of obesity care access,” said Gorham. “And one of our major efforts this year was an open letter to the employer community, signed by 68 organizations, outlining key principles to prioritize obesity care in the workplace. The letter was also published in the Wall Street Journal and delivered to leadership at top workplaces for women.”

In addition, Gorham shared that they are working to spread the word about their employee petition in support of the campaign’s employer principles and that they have already collected over 18 testimonials from women who wanted to share their stories about living with obesity.

Tedder was one of the advocates who shared her own experiences as part of the campaign. 

“I think that the EveryBODY Covered campaign is genius, especially because they're grounding it in advocacy, lived experience, and science,” she said. “If we tell our stories, if we personalize something and we give it a name and a face, then it’s not just stats from a textbook. Stories bring life to the numbers.”

Why is this campaign so important?

Numbers are the driving force behind why the EveryBODY Covered campaign is so vital. On average, one in three women in America lives with obesity, and the condition disproportionately affects women of color. 

Obesity is associated with over 200 health complications – including breast and ovarian cancers, fertility issues, diabetes, heart disease, and many more – but it doesn’t just affect people physically. It also comes with wide-ranging mental, social, and financial impacts.

“Obesity continues to be largely misunderstood, with many viewing it as a matter of willpower – rather than as the chronic disease that it is, with many causes out of an individual’s control, such as hormones and genetics,” said Gorham. “Unfortunately, this misconception has created health insurance barriers that limit women’s ability to receive obesity care.”

Tedder agreed. “From a public health perspective, first off, we have to evaluate and eradicate the policies that insurers have that clearly represent weight bias, which is really health injustice,” she said. “And secondly, we need to acknowledge that if insurers focus on covering comprehensive obesity care, it can help people prevent costly complications down the line, saving resources and money.”

Addressing these barriers is no small task, but doing so will not only save costs for everyone in the long run, but it also has the power to make all the difference in the lives of those living with obesity. 

After numerous negative interactions with healthcare professionals, Tedder eventually found a primary care physician who completely changed the way she viewed her own weight management journey.

“I had been sharing with her, over the years, all the things I had been doing in terms of helping other people to get healthy. And I was like, damn, I'm doing the same things, but it's not happening for me,” said Tedder. 

One day, her physician stopped her and said, “Michele, this is not your fault.”

“To have her say, ‘I believe you. I see you. I know that you've been doing the work, but this isn't about you, and it's not about any of that,’” said Tedder. “I honestly feel emotional even talking about it, because it was such a validating statement coming from my care provider.”

Thankfully, EveryBODY Covered is working hard to make this a reality for all women in the U.S.

Read more stories about weight management stigma and care here:

• Addressing Stigma in Diabetes and Obesity Care
• New Standards Are Clear: Weight Stigma Has No Place in Healthcare
• How To Find Good Diabetes Care

This content was made possible with support from Eli Lilly and Company. Sponsored articles are independently written by diaTribe and are subject to our standard editorial and medical review process to ensure they meet our standards for quality, accuracy, and relevancy. Final editorial authority rests with diaTribe.