In a nationally syndicated op-ed published in DC Journal, HFA Chief of Staff Mike Goscinski called on federal policymakers to stop treating physical activity as an afterthought in America's healthcare strategy.

Goscinski’s piece, “America Has a Healthcare Solution Policymakers Are Ignoring,” reached both Capitol Hill audiences and more than 35 million monthly readers through DC Journal’s syndication network. It argues that the infrastructure for meaningful preventive healthcare already exists already exists in the fitness industry—it just needs policy support to reach the Americans who need it most.

“Congress and federal health agencies do not need to invent a new solution,” Goscinski writes. “They need to scale one that already exists.”

The op-ed arrives at a pivotal moment. The Trump Administration's "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) initiative has injected new energy into the national health conversation, with a $14.1 billion investment drawing widespread attention.

The initiative’s early emphasis on nutrition, while important, has left physical activity on the margins of a debate where it should be central. Exercise prevents chronic disease, reduces obesity, and improves mental health, Goscinski notes, and the nationwide network of gyms, studios, and fitness facilities is already delivering those results at scale.

The barrier is not infrastructure or evidence; it’s cost. According to the op-ed, 58% of those who don’t use a fitness facility cite affordability as the primary obstacle to joining a gym. For lower-income Americans and older adults, in particular, cost is the deciding factor.

The consequences of inaction are substantial: Goscinski cites research that suggests that even modest reductions in cost could draw up to 14% of non-participants into structured exercise, saving more than $12 billion in annual healthcare and productivity costs while preventing hundreds of thousands of chronic disease cases.

The policy fixes that Goscinski outlined are targeted and achievable. He called for modernizing Medicare to expand fitness access for seniors, allowing Health Savings Accounts and Flexible Spending Accounts to cover fitness expenses with pretax dollars, and encouraging employers to integrate physical activity into preventive care benefit packages.

“Americans don't need massive, sweeping reforms,” Goscinski says, “but rather targeted fixes that align policy with how Americans are already approaching their health.”

Reviving the Presidential Youth Fitness Test

The publication of Goscinski’s editorial coincided with a significant development in healthcare policy: the Trump Administration's official restoration of the Presidential Youth Fitness Test, renewing a national standard for assessing youth physical performance in schools. The program is launching initially in 161 schools on US military installations. The White House also unveiled whitehouse.gov/fitness, an interactive tool allowing users to look up official fitness standards by age group.

The reintroduction of the fitness test represents a meaningful step toward integrating physical activity into national policy discussions, particularly for young people. Interim HFA President and CEO Greta Wagner welcomed the administration's action while connecting it to broader public health imperatives.

“The administration's recognition of the critical role movement plays in improving health outcomes, particularly for young people, is an important step forward,” Wagner says. “At a time when more children are facing rising mental health challenges, expanding access to physical activity is more important than ever. Regular movement supports not only physical health but also mental well-being, stress reduction, and overall quality of life.”

The stakes of getting youth engagement right are high. Today, fewer than one in four children meet recommended daily physical activity levels. Research consistently shows that children who are physically active are significantly more likely to carry healthy habits into adulthood, reducing chronic disease risk and building healthier communities over time. Fitness facilities across the country are already working to bridge that gap through youth programming that includes swimming lessons, kids camps, team sports, and structured classes.

HFA has stated its commitment to working with the administration and lawmakers at all levels of government to expand access to physical activity and integrate it more fully into the nation's preventive health strategy. As Goscinski says: “If Washington is serious about making America healthy again, it is time to act and put policy in place to back it up.”