Are you having difficulty finding safe and effective exercise and lifestyle options? Are you or someone you know suffering from an injury, chronic disease, or mental illness? If so, we encourage you to sign this petition advocating increased accessibility to exercise assessment, prescription, monitoring, and behaviour change counselling. This petition aims to include kinesiology as a direct-billable primary service in extended health insurance plans. 

The Problem:

Nearly 50% of adults aged 20 and above have at least one chronic disease or mental illness. 
Exercise has been shown to be beneficial for preventing or managing chronic conditions, including:

• Osteoarthritis and Lower back pain
• Fall prevention
• COPD and asthma
• Type 2 diabetes
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Neurologic conditions
• Cancer
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Coronary heart disease or heart failure
• Depression
• Anxiety

Exercise prescriptions are often underutilized in healthcare due to a lack of:

• Time,
• Funding
• Expertise among funded healthcare providers

Kinesiology is the science of movement and exercise, and registered Kinesiologists with the Alberta Kinesiology Association have the knowledge and training to assess exercise capacity, recommend exercise, and monitor client safety, progression, and compliance. Kinesiologists are an integral part of interdisciplinary teams. Unfortunately, most extended insurance providers do not list kinesiology as a primary service, which makes Kinesiology services less accessible to Albertans. This lack of coverage limits the ability of kinesiologists to reach patients who may benefit from exercise prescription and lifestyle modification to manage chronic conditions conservatively. 

By making Kinesiology a direct billable primary service by the extended health providers, we can: 

• Improve overall health outcomes and prevention of chronic diseases
• Reduce the burden on the healthcare system
  Increase the accessibility of personalized exercise prescriptions
• Reduce the reliance on pharmaceutical and surgical interventions

Please show your support by signing this petition today and join us in transforming how we manage acute and chronic physical and mental illnesses in Alberta.

References:

Public Health Agency of Canada. (2019). Prevalence of chronic diseases among Canadian adults.

Hoffmann, T. C., Maher, C. G., Briffa, T., Sherrington, C., Bennell, K., Alison, J., ... & Glasziou, P. P. (2016). Prescribing exercise interventions for patients with chronic conditions. Cmaj, 188(7), 510-518.

Pedersen, B. K., & Saltin, B. (2006). Evidence for prescribing exercise as therapy in chronic disease. Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports, 16(S1), 3-63.

Schuch, F. B., & Stubbs, B. (2019). The role of exercise in preventing and treating depression. Current sports medicine reports, 18(8), 299-304.