Free Republic

BOSTON - Come Jan. 1, Massachusetts residents who still haven’t signed up for health insurance will start racking up fines on a monthly basis. Those penalties may be up to half of the monthly premiums for the least expensive health care plan available, although the exact amount of the fines is expected to be announced as soon as this week. That’s on top of the loss of the $219 personal tax exemption for anyone not insured by the end of December. The fines are part of an increasingly more aggressive approach written into the state’s landmark health care law designed...

Patients who refuse to change their unhealthy lifestyles should not be treated by the NHS, the Conservatives said today. In a bid to ease spiralling levels of obesity and other health concerns, a Tory panel said certain treatments should be denied to patients who refuse to co-operate with health professionals and live healthier lifestyles. And those who do manage to improve their general health by losing weight and quitting smoking, for example, would receive "Health Miles" cards. Points earned could then be used to pay for health-related products such as gym membership and fresh vegetables. The aim is a shift...