Hummmm....."Obesity Number One Health Problem in US" Say CDC......The cost of obesity in the workplace...$73.1 BILLION a year.
Posted on 12/10/2014 7:38:58 AM PST by servo1969
Hummmm....."Obesity Number One Health Problem in US" Say CDC......The cost of obesity in the workplace...$73.1 BILLION a year.
I don’t mind being called an a-hole by those who pimp death and addiction.
No...I’m sure it will be one or the other, most likely the other.
Now, it is a carrot, and a lot of people submit to it because they can save $500 a year. I have the choice, and I could save the money too. But I don’t, and I pay $500 a year more than someone who does.
What I think will happen is it will change at some point to a stick, where they will stop offering the “discount” and everyone will be paying the same, and change it to “We aren’t offering the discount anymore. But if you don’t do it as a standard matter of course, you will be charged $500 more than everyone else who does it.”
Basically, the test will be mandatory to get the normal rate, and you will pay a penalty for NOT doing it.
And it won’t stop there once it has started.
Do you walk five miles a day, yes or no? We have accepted methods you have to use to prove it, and if you don’t, there will be an additional penalty.
How about your daily caloric intake? Do you drink soda? Do you smoke cigarettes? How about taking drugs?
And so on.
If Eric Gardner sold loose cigs, what did he get for each one and how did he get the packs to begin with, surely he didn’t pay $13 a pack for them. Stolen cigs?
“Making smokers pay accordingly for the actual cost of their health care is pragmatic. I also think it’s fair to have people who are overweight pay for the actual costs of their health care.”
How do you do that?
If a smoker has bronchitis health care is not paid for but if someone has bronchitis and doesn’t smoke it’s covered?
Same with diabetes and people who are overweight.
How can the cause of the illness be proven?
.
Regular checkups. If someone is a smoker then they'd be asked to quit, provided assistance to quit, and expected to do so within a certain time. After that their premiums would increase according to actuarial tables.
Likewise with obese people (whose obesity is not a symptom of a diagnosed disease) they'd be given options and if they were making progress toward an acceptable weight range then they'd not see any increase in rates. Otherwise, they would.
What I propose is letting free market forces be allowed to do their thing with regards to healthcare premiums. People who deliberately cause their own problems should have to pay their own way and insurance companies should be free to charge them accordingly.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.