"We’ve defined loneliness as a treatable human condition..."

Loneliness May Be a Bigger Public Health Threat Than Smoking or Obesity

Governments are just starting to confront the issue.

As more American health plans move to a managed care system -- one that pays for services based on quality instead of quantity -- CareMore’s Jain says it’s imperative that social isolation be integrated into health care. “We’ve defined loneliness as a treatable human condition, and up until now there just haven’t been payment models to encourage that,” he says. “But primary care doctors now have an obligation to address it.”