I have always thought it odd that smokers are so shunned, at least in part because of the health problems and costs they bring, while the wilfully overweight are victims of the fast food industry. It needs to be a flat rate for everyone. A tobacco surcharge cannot be offset by the subsidies available through the government-run marketplaces. We deserve the same coverage that our hired help takes for granted. Should smokers pay more for health insurance? He has a brain tumor. Hopefully these penalties will get these overindulgent people to quit their bad habits and lead healthier lives thus live longer. Obviously they use more health care resources than a single employee. Smokers should be allowed to make lifestyle choices free from coercion from employers, insurers, or the government. Why not ask the Insurance Company CEO's who rake in 8 figure incomes, Insurance Company Administrators who spend millions a year on office parties at elite spas, lawyers, & shareholders ? for charging me more for healthcare. Fat people and smokers definetly should pay more for their Health Insurance. Therefore, they cost LESS than non-smokers who live longer and who will suffer other costly age-related diseases. Insurance is collective protection against risk. "Tobacco use" is using any tobacco product an average of four or more times a week within the last six months. Some Liberal Democrat(s) in Washington stated that it's discriminasting against fat people and smokers, that's why we all have to pay. As the fight against tobacco continues to evolve, so should our policy ideas. There is no question that smoking increases health risks and those who don't smoke shouldn't have to bear the burden of those who choose this insidiious habit. If you don't like it, do something about it. In fact, smokers hurt non-smokers by racking up healthcare expenses brought on by the hazards of their habit. D) Is there any way to motivate self-control? So it's additional incentive to stop smoking. As we will see, too, the harmful effect of these behaviors are not just medically related. I've given enough money for their addictively engineered products. Hate to be a bearer of bad tidings, but you have to put yourself in their shoes. I feel great and I saved a fortune on potato chips and junk food. The penalty for smoking will depend on where you live or work. What about those who use to be silm and later became FAT? These effects arent limited to the person sucking on the cigarette, either exposure to second hand smokeis also problematic. METALWORKER in La Salle, IL. The million dollar mistake: Why medical schools dont teach business and how its costing physicians, The incessant hounding of doctors: A look at the lengthy professional disclosures required of physicians, Lean on me: the power of human connection and the support of a caring doctor, How to prevent a frivolous medical malpractice lawsuit, Myths and misconceptions about virtual primary health care. So yes they should pay more. But I am willing to compromise. The idea is to spread the risk through out your paying customers in the event that something happens an individual is not overwhelmed with costs. I don't need or want Health Insurance. I am a smoker for 14 years now and my answer to the question is; YES! and people might get healthier. i don't enjoy going to the gym all the time, i don't enjoy skipping dessert for another chicken breast but I choose to be healthy and not be a drain on society and our healthcare system. When insurance companies price smokers out of their products, we all pay. ), and that they are concerned with expense. Sure they should, as long as drinkers and potheads follow suit. The idea is also dead wrong. Your nonsmoking colleague might pay nothing. I pay for an individual policy for our family, (we do not get health insurance through employment) and what most people don't realize is that insurance companies already practice this discrimination. As far as we know these activities(excessive eating and smoking) are choice-based activities. Compare Club Australia Pty Ltd (CCA) is a corporate authorised representative (AFS Representative number 001279036) of Alternative Media Pty Ltd (AFS License number 486326). How long has it been since you had your last cigarette? Thus, in the name of anti-discrimination (tobacco lobby) and ensuring access for the poor (the anti-cancer groups). Fair is fair! No you see the importance of everyone being required to have insurance, be it public or private. I am 54 but I am as healthy as a 21 year old! It is a fact that if you leave an unhealthy lifestyle, your lifespan will be shorten and costlier. Loss prevention, however, reserves care for those who need it. P.S:- I am not a somker or fat(atleast for now) so no bias aganist smokers. On top of that just tell me how to live my life too. Use more, pay more. As a person who is living large, I can tell you that I don't have high blood pressure, I don't have diabetes, my knees and back are fine. Thoughts? The risk is based on numerous factors such as, lifestyle and genetics. The second ethical argument for charging smokers higher insurance rates is that it is actuarially fair because individual insurance rates should be based on expected payouts. Taxes do not prohibit people from engaging in behavior, but they can help to ensure that individuals bear the costs of their behavior. Smoking is the No. Healthy foods cost two to three times as much. It is a shame that money has to be a motivator to incent someone to become healthy! You get what you reward! Jack, I'm glad you brought that up. Jack, when we start down this road of charging people higher premiums based on the choices they make where does it end. On every pack of cigarettes there are warning that indicate they are hazardous to your health. As a former smoker I firmly believe that people who engage in unhealthy and unsafe activities should pay more health care but then that only works if they have insurance. Smokers do not currently pay more for health insurance premiums, due to Australia's community-rated health insurance system. In The Cure for Politicized Pediatric Gender Care, Moti Gorin argues that a U.S.-based systematic review, conducted by a trusted major medical organization such as the National Institutes of Health or the National Academy of Medicine, is needed to develop consistent standards for pediatric gender care. Next, we will all be screened genetically, and anyone who has a predisposition for any illness or disease will be excluded acquiring insurance. Rewarding criminals and people who have no will to be responsible for their lives is what is destroying our Country! The Insurance company shouldn't give you a hard time in achieving that goal either. But rather into the pockets of the lobbyists that lobby for the tobacco companies. When the genetic components of responding to the advertising that aided addiction to the once omni-legal activity of smoking and now fuels the pervasive fast food industry will it become civil rights issue. The services have been available but no one took advantage. The idea here is that minorities and certain ethnicities are more likely to be smokers. A study of 20,000 employees showed that smokers had more hospital visits per 1,000 (124 versus 76), had a longer average length of stay (6.5 versus 5 days) and made six more visits to health care facilities per year than non-smokers. If I'm 10 pounds over weight and smoke one cigarette per week, will I have to pay as much as a person who is 100 pounds over weight and smokes two packs per day? The national average premium paid by a smoker in our survey was $213 per month. This means you're less likely to wind up in hospital with a serious disease caused by smoking; in turn, this puts a reduced burden on your wallet. Of course they should pay more. Just because someone is living large doesn't mean that it is by choice nor unhealthy. If you start down that road, there's no stopping. Every month, you calculate what you might have spent on health insurance had the individual been a smoker or obese and give them half. And people who drive more than others, people who work 3 jobs, people who don't work enough, people who drink too much, those that don't drink enough. Of course, this is America, corporations are free to do anything they want and individuals pay all the freight. Why have we let our diseased health care system go untreated? simply put, yes. I also don't have an issue with taxing excessive drinkers either. Check with a financial professional before making any decisions. Reuters reports a growing number of companies are raising health care costs for so-called unhealthy employees. I think educating them is. So instead, companies are now going to start making these employees pay more. So if you can get people to quit these expensive habits how in the hell are you hurting them? Health insurance companies are beginning to act more and more like banks. Running and hiking require no money. prehaps they will be more motivated to change their behavior and adopt more healthy habits. As long as there are no consequences for these people for their choices why would they change. We could be next in line just so because we are short. Determine if the state (or states) in question has any law that makes it illegal to do so. Risk does not mean something will happen but there is a chance something may. Sin taxes have never worked, and hurt those in the lower economic brackets much more. Is that what we want for healthcare? The availability of products compared may change from time to time. The odds. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. I actually fit into both of these catagories and I do agree that the charge should be more. Sure. Seems to make sense. Responsible people who exercise and try to enhance their health should have greatly discounted rates. Michelle, the former editorial director, insurance, at QuinStreet, is a writer, editor and expert on car insurance and personal finance. These include, but are not limited to: man buns and beards ; whether jam or cream goes first on a scone; the colour of The Dress; and smoking. I realize this is a difficult area to try to control as some activites are based on genetic predisposition, etc. This is just one more shameful proposal. The health insurance industry unexpectedly began to support a plan for universal health insurance for American citizens. Copyright 2023 Insure.com. For those of us who must struggle in our writing to convey with clarity the complicated ideas we are driven to share, Wills gift for off-the-cuff eloquence was awe-inspiring. But is it worth the adde A guide to Overseas Health Cover (OVHC) Visa 600. In addition, some states have laws protecting employees who engage in legal off-duty conduct such as smoking. RELATED:Sitting is the new smoking. It concerns a team of office workers at a morally questionable company that performs brain surgery on employees to sever the consciousness of their work and personal lives. Action that smokers and fat people take is costing Health Care. If you are knowingly putting your health at risk you should be forced to pay more for your insurance. Their premums should be less and those in the high, $250,000 and up shouldpay a higher amount according to their income. For the same reason young boys pay more than girls for car insurance. Not all products available from our partners are compared and not all products are available to all customers. People who work in office jobs and sit all day since that's terrible for you? Moreover, if smokers are charged higher rates, then other higher-risk groups should also be charged higher rates, since it would be unfair to single out smokers. I excersize daily and I have a positive outlook on life. 6."Health Insurance Surcharges for Tobacco Users: State and Federal Rules." Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY users should call 1- 844-704-7357), 24 hours a day/7 days. Now that's the question you need to be asking. Othersrebutted that suntanning, eating junk food and drinking alcohol also count as voluntary bad habits that can negatively impact on health. Not to mention I don't get sick nearly as often. Become part of a like-minded community. However, theres no evidence that higher health insurance premiums encourage people to quit, according to the Commonwealth Fund, a private foundation aimed at improving the health care system. Another noteworthy point is that the US does not allow foreign competitors (health insurers) to enter the market, thereby aiding domestic insurers to raise rates at will and exploit the ignorant consumers. Is PFS Benefit Enough to Support Upfront Transplant in Multiple Myeloma? The fact is we can all blame genetics for one thing or the other. Smokers should pay for their own health costs. Though smoking is often seen as an adult issue, we should continue to support the many excellent anti-smoking campaigns and participate in research that helps us understand how to encourage adolescents that have started smoking to kick some butt. Financial professional before making any decisions since you had your last cigarette because someone is living large does mean... Availability of products compared may change from time to time health at risk you should be forced to more... Determine if the state ( or states ) in question has any that... 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