JEFFERSON CITY — On July 25, Sen. David Pearce, R-Warrensburg, will join members of the Missouri Eating Disorders Association (MOEDA), including the group’s vice-president Annie Seal, in kicking off a series of panel discussions designed to bring awareness to the continuing issue of eating disorders in the Show-Me State.
“In our country, eating disorders are more common than Alzheimer’s disease,” Sen. Pearce said. “While the groups with the fastest rising incidences of eating disorders are teenage boys and women over 40, young women in their teens and in college are still at great risk for developing an eating disorder. It is currently estimated that 4 percent of female college students have anorexia. This is one reason that the city of Warrensburg, with the University of Central Missouri in the heart of the community, makes the ideal platform to begin these statewide discussion panels.”
The first of the Blue Ribbon Panel discussions will take place July 25, at the Johnson County Community Health Services, 723 PCA Road, Warrensburg, Mo., 64093. The panel will begin at 3:00 p.m. in the lower-level classroom and will continue until 5:40 p.m. All concerned citizens are encouraged to attend.
“The epidemic of eating disorders is of extreme concern to me,” Sen. Pearce said. “I certainly ask any citizen affected by an eating disorder to bring his or her questions and previous knowledge to share with other community members in the hope that we can address this issue thoroughly. Knowing that so many citizens are suffering, either from a disorder or as a family member of a victim, I am constantly seeking out ways to bring awareness to the devastating effects that this type of mental illness can cause. I will continue to work in the Capitol to bring beneficial legislation to the Senate in hopes that we can address this serious need.”
A provision in Senate Bill 754, passed in 2010, created the Missouri Eating Disorder Council under the aegis of the Missouri Department of Mental Health. The original language in that legislation was sponsored by Sen. Pearce in Senate Bill 744 the same year.
In addition to discussions including the effects of eating disorders on the body, the topics of insurance coverage for eating disorders, legislation affecting eating disorders, and advocacy will be addressed.
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