ORONO, Maine (AP) — A University of Maine study says the medical costs of obesity for children and adolescents in the state could reach $1.2 billion over the next 20 years.

UMaine economics Professor Todd Gabe's study also suggests that the incidence of obesity is likely to increase from 7.8 percent of Maine's youths to nearly 26 percent as they grow into adults.

Gabe says his study brings the issue of a nationwide obesity epidemic closer to home.

Complete your profile to continue reading and get FREE access to BenefitsPRO, part of your ALM digital membership.

Your access to unlimited BenefitsPRO content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:

  • Breaking benefits news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.