For 43 million Americans on September 23 and probably the rest of the U.S sometime in 2011, preventive services just got cheaper.

No co-pays, no deductibles, no direct charges for stuff that works.

Now, we must figure out how to make it fun, sexy and easy. For kids and adults.  But doctors getting paid to do it? Way fun.

Which services?

Blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol tests; many cancer screenings; routine vaccinations; prenatal care; and regular wellness visits for infants and children; screening and counseling for obesity; and tests for HIV. Kathleen Doheny at WebMD has a comprehensible short list; healthcare.gov has a long one.

These are mostly to diagnose disease, but the vaccines and obesity counseling are to prevent it. What about obesity?

“The USPSTF recommends that clinicians screen all adult patients for obesity and offer intensive counseling and behavioral interventions to promote sustained weight loss for obese adults….and screen children aged 6 years and older for obesity and offer them or refer them to comprehensive, intensive behavioral interventions to promote improvement in weight status.”

Does this mean that the intensive Ornish program, designed for heart disease treatment and on the verge of approval by Medicare would qualify, but something milder, like Diet Plan of the Month, might not?

If insurers cover weight loss counseling, there will be a lot more clinicians interested. And that will start the change in obesity treatment in health care.