Home » Humana teams with ChildObesity180 to reverse the trend of childhood obesity

Humana teams with ChildObesity180 to reverse the trend of childhood obesity

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Feb. 16, 2012) BUSINESS WIRE— Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) announced its support of the Active Schools Acceleration Project’s (ASAP) Innovation Competition, an initiative of ChildObesity180.

As announced earlier this month by First Lady Michelle Obama, ASAP’s Innovation Competition is designed to identify, reward, and scale the best approaches and technological innovations in school-based physical activity.

“ASAP’s Innovation Competition perfectly complements Humana’s focus on making fun things healthy and healthy things fun,” said Raja Rajamannar, Humana’s Chief Innovation and Marketing Officer. “By creating fun programs and technological innovations that promote physical activity among children, we can encourage kids to adopt an active lifestyle early on – helping them develop healthy habits that will prevent health issues later in their lives.”

Humana understands the importance of creating innovative programs to get people up and moving. For instance, Humana has teamed with software developer Ubisoft to include Humana-sponsored content in the Xbox Kinect game “Your Shape 2012: Fitness Evolved” – which encourages people to have fun, stay active and better their health.

ChildObesity180 Innovation Competition

Based on creativity, impact and potential for scale, school-based programs and technological innovations that promote physical activity for children will be eligible to earn meaningful prize money through the competition. The contest will award a total of $500,000 in prizes, with individual awards of up to $100,000. In addition to monetary awards, top winners will advance to participate in fully funded pilot studies aimed at expanding both reach and impact.

ASAP is calling for entries from schools, teachers, technology developers, entrepreneurs – anyone with a passion and a plan to get students active and healthy. The competition features two categories: “School Programs” and “Technology Innovation.”

Teachers, schools or entire districts are encouraged to submit their in-school physical activity programs to the competition in the “School Programs” category. This may include any curriculum, activity, environmental modification, event or other initiative that promotes quality school-time physical activity and is currently being implemented with their students.

Winners of the “Technology Innovation” category will demonstrate how their existing or emerging technology can be used to inspire kids to be physically active. This may include devices, tracking and measurement systems, software applications, innovative uses of social media, gaming, smart phones and more.

“Many schools have found creative ways to incorporate physical activity into the daily routine of their students, helping them to build lifelong healthy habits,” said Christina Economos, Ph.D., Vice Chair and Director of ChildObesity180, Associate Professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, and a leading researcher in the field of childhood obesity prevention. “This competition is about recognizing those champions and identifying opportunities to bring their innovative solutions to scale.”

In addition to school-based programming, ASAP wants to learn about innovative applications of technology, both in school and beyond, to get kids moving.

The competition will accept submissions from now through April 2, 2012. All competition details can be found at www.ActiveSchoolsASAP.org.

About Humana

Humana Inc., headquartered in Louisville, is a leading health care company that offers a wide range of insurance products and health and wellness services that incorporate an integrated approach to lifelong well-being. By leveraging the strengths of its core businesses, Humana believes it can better explore opportunities for existing and emerging adjacencies in health care that can further enhance wellness opportunities for the millions of people across the nation with whom the company has relationships.

More information regarding Humana is available to investors via the Investor Relations page of the company’s web site at www.humana.com.

Active Schools Acceleration Project (ASAP) is an initiative of ChildObesity180, an organization which fosters cross-sector collaboration through a portfolio of high-impact initiatives which aim to reverse the trend of childhood obesity within one generation’s time. The ChildObesity180 membership is comprised of national leaders from the public, nonprofit, academic and private sectors who are using their reach and expertise to drive an integrated national strategy to prevent childhood obesity. ChildObesity180 is chaired by Peter Dolan, former Chairman and CEO of Bristol-Myers Squibb and Gemin X, and Vice Chair of the Tufts University Board of Trustees. Leading childhood obesity researcher Christina Economos, Ph.D., serves as the Vice Chair and Director, and Miriam Nelson, Ph.D., as the Co-Director. Drs. Economos and Nelson are faculty of the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. Founded in 2009, ChildObesity180 is conducted in collaboration with Tufts University; the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation serves as a strategic partner. For more information about ChildObesity 180, visitwww.ChildObesity180.org.