About HealthyKansas
WHO WE ARE
HealthyKansas is a State of Kansas wellness initiative built around three pillars:
- Getting Active
- Eating Sensibly
- Living Tobacco-Free
Under the leadership of the Kansas Department of Health & Environment, HealthyKansas wants to create a culture of wellness by promoting prevention and connecting collaborative partners.
It's a brand. It's a resource. It's oodles of fun! But ultimately? It's a statement that Kansas is ready and capable of focusing on wellness.
OUR VISION
Our vision is Kansans living active, tobacco-free lives fueled by good nutrition.
OUR MISSION
To bridge statewide networks with grassroots initiatives in the movement to make preventive wellness the sustained norm in Kansas.
Follow this link to see the fancy version of the HealthyKansas Vision, Mission, and Goals Statement.
WHY PREVENTION?
The nation's approach to health care has been — and, in many ways, is still — like a kitchen sink that's overflowing. Instead of turning off the faucet, our attention has been on how to mop up ever-increasing amounts of water. Look familiar?
“We spend $2.2 trillion in this country, mopping up the floor,” says Kansas Secretary of Health & Environment Roderick Bremby. "If we want to solve the problem, we have to turn off the tap. That's what prevention does, it turns off the tap."
"There is not enough money in the system — with the growth and aging of the population — to provide medical care for all," says Bremby. "We've got to stay well as a population; we've got to create a culture of wellness."
How do we do that?
Did you know that most of our sustained health care expenses are attributed to chronic disease? It's true. And did you know that most chronic disease can be avoided by three really basic behaviors? Yep, also true. What are those behaviors, you ask? You guessed it – get active, eat healthy, and live tobacco-free.
How can I get involved?
Take the HealthyKansas Pledge to get active, eat sensibly, and live tobacco-free. Encourage others in your household, circle of friends, and community to do the same. Our goal is to get another 30,000 Kansans to pledge in the next year. … Still need convincing? Follow this linkfor Pledge.
Visit healthykansas.org for info and resources to support your decision to take charge of your health. Give HealthyKansas a holler if you have questions, comments, suggestions, or healthy tips to pass along. We might just include it on the website!
OUR HISTORY
"HealthyKansas" was officially launched in December 2004 by Governor Kathleen Sebelius as the umbrella brand of a social marketing campaign to bring about multi-faceted health reform.
In addition to promoting wellness, the Governor's initiative encouraged health reforms and, in partnership with the Legislature, helped create the Kansas Health Policy Authority, a quasi-independent state agency tasked with tracking health care data, coordinating a statewide health reform agenda, and managing public health coverage programs like Medicaid, HealthWave, and the State Employee's Health Benefit Program.
What stands today under the HealthyKansas brand is the wellness initiative you see here. It's a lean, powerful message about prevention by getting active, eating sensibly, and living tobacco-free. To get that message across, we're all about connecting our friends at the state level with our friends at the local level so that resources, collaboration, and excitement about a healthier Kansas can mingle freely!
OUR LOGO
The faithful sunflower is the symbol of growth, nourishment, and Kansas itself. The sun is a universal symbol of health, energy, and determined optimism. Together, the intertwined sunflowers and the sun evoke the three pillars of HealthyKansas: Get Active, Eat Sensibly, and Live Tobacco-Free.