A person is considered morbidly obese when they have a BMI (Body Mass Index) of 30 or higher. In the United States, the obesity rate is about 30% and that translates to about 20 million Americans who would potentially qualify to have weight loss surgery. The medical problems that you can develop from being morbidly obese include type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, heartburn, reflux, problems with your bones and joints, etc.