For immediate release: April 4, 2008
Contact: Leigh Tofferi - (802) 371-3205

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont Joins National Workplace Fitness Effort

Vermonters Join Thousands of Americans for
National Walk @ Lunch DaySM on April 30

Berlin, Vermont – On April 30, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont will join its sister Blue plans across the country in hosting the second annual National Walk @ Lunch DaySM. National Walk @ Lunch Day, sponsored by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, encourages people to take time during their lunch breaks to start walking toward better health. Vermont employers and school leaders will host walks and BCBSVT will sponsor six community walks throughout the state at:
• The State House in Montpelier
• Church Street in Burlington (behind City Hall)
• City Hall in Rutland
• The future home of the Welcome Center in St. Johnsbury
• Town Hall in Springfield
• Town Offices in Bennington

BCBSVT is proud this year to welcome support from the American Heart Association and the Vermont Education Health Initiative (the health plan covering educators and other school staff in Vermont). Teachers and their students will walk at many schools around the state and the Heart Association will lend support at the State House walk. BCBSVT representatives expect thousands of Vermonters to participate, as they did last year. State legislators and employees at worksites, large and small, that receive coverage through BCBSVT health plans have already registered for walks.

Most Americans’ schedules are built around their workdays, so National Walk @ Lunch Day is designed to fit into–not compete with–the average daily routine. Last year many employers supported National Walk @ Lunch Day by encouraging their workforces to participate.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates that the cost to treat illness and chronic disease caused by inactive lifestyles is nearly $1,000 for every family in America, every year. Simply getting 30 minutes of moderate physical activity, such as a brisk walk, at least five times a week, has significant health benefits, such as lowering the risk of developing or dying from cardiovascular disease, hypertension or type 2 diabetes and improving the health of muscles, bones and joints. [Source: Physical Activity and Health, A Report of the Surgeon General, 1996]

“National Walk @ Lunch Day is designed to educate millions of consumers about how their daily decisions can have an impact on their health and well-being. It also creates an opportunity for employers to engage their employees in physical activity that promotes a healthier workplace environment,” said William R. Milnes, President and CEO of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont. “Better informed and more physically active consumers also can mean fewer serious health problems down the road, which helps better control the rising cost of health care in our nation.”

“We want to encourage all Vermont employers, whether they’re our members or not, to participate in this year’s Walk @ Lunch Day,” Milnes said. “That’s why we’re holding even more special centralized events this year than we did in last year’s inaugural event. We will also have some modest incentives available for employers in all areas of the state to use in encouraging their employees to take this fun and important step toward better fitness.”

Employers who want information about special programs related to Walk @ Lunch Day here in Vermont should contact the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont communications staff at 802.371.3335 or visit the organization’s website at www.bcbsvt.com/walkatlunch.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is the state's oldest and largest private health insurer, providing coverage for about 180,000 Vermonters. It employs over 350 Vermonters at its headquarters in Berlin and its full-service field office in Williston, and has offered group and individual health plans to Vermonters for more than 60 years.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is an independent corporation operating under a license with the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.
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