Fitness Is Central To Health

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All HealthPass plans include access to fitness facilities and programs. For those in the Salem area, this includes memberships to Courthouse Club Fitness for all covered family members.

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We include this benefit because we believe healthy food and regular exercise can prevent, treat, and reverse many chronic (read: expensive) medical conditions. 

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Plus, we understand the countless physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual benefits of a healthy, active, adventurous lifestyle.

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Sick Care Is Not Healthcare

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Our current medication/procedure-first model of care is not set up to address chronic conditions through lifestyle. There may be many explanations for this (some more nefarious than others), but the simplest and most obvious reason is just a lack of time. 

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Physicians are not given enough time to encourage and guide lifestyle changes. 

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On average, a visit with a primary care provider lasts a little more than seven minutes. Seven minutes is only enough to notice and name a disease, then prescribe its corresponding pharmaceutical or surgical intervention. 

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For example:

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• Diabetes → Insulin
• High Cholesterol → Statins

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By allowing patients easier access to their doctors and doctors more time with their patients, our providers can look for the underlying causes of disease and find a way to include food and fitness in their treatment plans. DPCs do not have to request permission from insurance companies to order labs, and they have ample time to talk through the numbers. This means they can recommend lifestyle interventions and track the changes in a more sophisticated manner than simply measuring your weight. 

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Every provider in the HealthPass DPC network believes in the power of lifestyle to improve your health.

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The Medical Benefits of Exercise

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Fitness and medicine are often considered to be in two separate categories. Medicine helps sick people. Fitness helps people look good, lose weight, or get muscular. 

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Research bears out numerous medical benefits of pursuing fitness first. 

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• Exercise and healthy eating can prevent, treat, and reverse many metabolic dysfunctions, including diabetes, heart diseases, high cholesterol, and others. 
• Many autoimmune conditions (including eczema, asthma, and chronic inflammation) can be treated through diet. 
• Even moderate exercise can treat mental health disorders like depression and anxiety. 
• Regular exercise through strength training can prevent and treat joint and muscle pain. 
• Training with weights improves strength and balance, which can prevent falls in older populations. 
• According to recent research, a high VO2 max (a measure of your ability to move oxygen through the blood) is the best predictor of longevity. 

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We do not see fitness as a vain pursuit; it is central to our pursuit of a long, healthy, and happy life. By including gym access in all HealthPass plans, we make it as easy as possible for HealthPass members to become more physically fit, and by extension, more healthy.

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A Better Way

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Right now, the pill/procedure-first system has to wait for a patient to be sick to offer any help. 

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Those who do not cross the threshold from “not sick” to “sick” and have no diagnosable disease with a pharmaceutical or surgical solution simply have to wait until any underlying conditions get bad enough to make an appointment. 

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HealthPass offers a better way. 

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First, we connect patients with DPCs with the time and freedom to investigate underlying conditions. They can ask deep questions and listen to the answers. Every DPC in our network believes in the power of lifestyle (including regular exercise) to prevent, treat, and reverse chronic conditions. 

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Then, we make accessing a family-friendly fitness facility simple and free. 

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Lastly, we empower employers to create a culture of health and wellness within their organizations. 

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HealthPass makes fitness a primary ingredient in every member’s medical journey.

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