Poll Says Smokers, Obese Should Pay More for Health Insurance

[Hobbit]

That means the the obese and smokers won't be paying anymore than the healthy non-smokers, resulting in higher costs for everyone like it is right now.

No, you completely missed the point. Obese and smokers will pay higher premiums. What I was saying is that if you have some obscure family relation to a cancer patient, you could shop around for an insurance company willing to ignore that, just like Allstate has accident forgiveness, and is thus appealing to people with a single blemish on their driving record. However, smokers and the obese would be unable to find cheap and comprehensive health insurance, just as it's hard to find cheap car insurance if you tend to total cars on a yearly basis.

 

[Gunny]

I'm missing the "big deal" here. Older people pay more, IF they can even get insured. Smokers and fat people are in higher-risk categories because they obviously are at a higher risk.

Whether fat people are hereditarily, medically or just fat from over-eating, thier medical risk is the same; therefore, the reason irrelevant.

People who smoke, choose to do so.

People should be able to pay for insurance in accordance with their need for services. That just makes sense.

 

[SpidermanTuba]

I never expected anything less.....They've been taxing the shit out of smoker's for yrs now (yes I'm a smoker), so I always wondered WHO would be the next group they targeted......

Well lo and behold, it's people who are fat....

I can see it now....A special tax on all sweet stuff, greasy stuff, soda, all them goodies.....

And then it will be on to the next group....hmmm, I wonder who that will be?

Hey, it's ONLY FAIR...

They just outlawed smoking in restaurants in Louisiana on Jan 1st. Fortunately, I quite smoking on Jan 4th. I'm using the patch. Its going OK so far. If anyone has any suggestions to get my mind off smoking, I'd love to hear them.


It will kill a few restaurants no doubt (though far less than Katrina did), but the reduction in health costs will no doubt be huge. Smoking goes down markedly in places that outlaw it in public buildings.

One place where they should never outlaw smoking is in bars and outside (except for near public entrances). Even as a now, non-smoker, I think it would be ridiculous to outlaw smoking in bars.

 

[wiggles]

I live in California and I smoke. You get used to having to go outside, but then it doesn't snow here either.

And as far as smokers paying more for health insurance, we already do. For one, in CA and other states, they tax the hell out of cigs and that money's supposed to go to public health and smoking cessation programs, but it doesn't. And then they tried to pass another bill to tax them by 300% more.

And then smokers pay higher insurance premiums on top of that.

I get that though. I really do.

Junk food of all kinds (soda, chips, candy, Sausage McMuffins, etc.) is 100% tax free, however.

That part I don't get.

 

[dilloduck]

I live in California and I smoke. You get used to having to go outside, but then it doesn't snow here either.

And as far as smokers paying more for health insurance, we already do. For one, in CA and other states, they tax the hell out of cigs and that money's supposed to go to public health and smoking cessation programs, but it doesn't. And then they tried to pass another bill to tax them by 300% more.

And then smokers pay higher insurance premiums on top of that.

I get that though. I really do.

Junk food of all kinds (soda, chips, candy, Sausage McMuffins, etc.) is 100% tax free, however.

That part I don't get.

I think it's easier to tax smokers because it's easier to convince people that smokers bother other people.

 

[wiggles]

If they just had a regular state sales tax on obvious junk - candy, soda, chips - just the standard 8.25%, it'd help make the cigarette taxes go down easier, especially when they start talking about hiking cig taxes another 300% at a time. It's not like people need Doritos and Pepsi any more than I need nicotine.

 

[dilloduck]

If they just had a regular state sales tax on obvious junk - candy, soda, chips - just the standard 8.25%, it'd help make the cigarette taxes go down easier, especially when they start talking about hiking cig taxes another 300% at a time. It's not like people need Doritos and Pepsi any more than I need nicotine.

Other people paying taxes never makes the cigarette tax any cheaper for me. We just got a buck added to every pack of smokes in Texas. Taxing twinkies ain't gonna change that.

 

[wiggles]

Other people paying taxes never makes the cigarette tax any cheaper for me. We just got a buck added to avery pack of smokes in Texas. Taxing twinkies ain't gonna change that.

Yeah but I'm a libby Dem. I want everyone taxed.

It just seems hypocritical to me to put all the expense on smokers. Bad as smoking is, it's not the only public health issue we've got going.

 

[dilloduck]

Yeah but I'm a libby Dem. I want everyone taxed.

It just seems hypocritical to me to put all the expense on smokers. Bad as smoking is, it's not the only public health issue we've got going.

but but but wiggles----they just take our money and blow it.

 

[sitarro]

Nobody is immune to what opening this Pandora's box could cause. I agree with Gem totally.

What do you enjoy doing, riding a bicycle? There are definitely stats on bike injuries. Splashing around in homosexual bathhouses, please, who gets more diseases than this group? How about skydiving, hiking, mountain climbing, camping, sitting around a fireplace, rollerbladding, skateboarding, motorcycling, exploring the desert, gardening, breast implants, viagra, owning a pet.....all have their risks and it will come out what your favorite is....think about it.

 

[liberalogic]

Other people paying taxes never makes the cigarette tax any cheaper for me. We just got a buck added to avery pack of smokes in Texas. Taxing twinkies ain't gonna change that.

In New York they've hovered around $8.00 a pack for the last few years. Do yourself a favor and stay in Texas or you'll end up broke like me.

 

[dilloduck]

In New York they've hovered around $8.00 a pack for the last few years. Do yourself a favor and stay in Texas or you'll end up broke like me.

So I've heard---think I could make enough on the blackmarket to make it worth my while or would I be killed for moving in on someone's turf?

 

[nukeman]

If they just had a regular state sales tax on obvious junk - candy, soda, chips - just the standard 8.25%, it'd help make the cigarette taxes go down easier, especially when they start talking about hiking cig taxes another 300% at a time. It's not like people need Doritos and Pepsi any more than I need nicotine.

Here's the problem with taxing these types of goods. If you tax these then they are not considered staples and food stamps will not pay for them. The people on aid would tell you, your not being fair to them by not allowing them to enjoy the same food stuffs as others. You would be making them second class citizens and Lord knows we can't have that...

So this problem falls back on the liberals who feel everyone shoud be taxed so others can enjoy the same. Its a Catch-22 for Liberals if they tax it the poor can't have it with aid, if they dont tax it they are seen as hypocriticle. this is a complete no win situation for anyone.

I for one believe it should be taxed at a higher rate. We americans eat way to much processed food and junk....

 

[wiggles]

Here's the problem with taxing these types of goods. If you tax these then they are not considered staples and food stamps will not pay for them. The people on aid would tell you, your not being fair to them by not allowing them to enjoy the same food stuffs as others. You would be making them second class citizens and Lord knows we can't have that...

So this problem falls back on the liberals who feel everyone shoud be taxed so others can enjoy the same. Its a Catch-22 for Liberals if they tax it the poor can't have it with aid, if they dont tax it they are seen as hypocriticle. this is a complete no win situation for anyone.

I for one believe it should be taxed at a higher rate. We americans eat way to much processed food and junk....

That's kind of the point though. I don't think foodstamps should cover these items because they're not really food.
I do see potential difficulties in implementing this idea though. For instance there are meat products like sausages and bacon that contain high enough levels of saturated fats and carcinogens to cancel out any benefits of their protein content. Those could be hard to tax, and hard to justify not taxing if you're basing the tax on nutritional value.
I don't really see how it all falls back on liberals though. I don't know any liberals who like to see poor people eating a bunch of junk.

Ironic aside: you can't buy toothpaste or floss with foodstamps either. So if you're poor enough to need foodstamps you can rot your teeth out with all the candy and Coke you like, but brushing and flossing is a luxury that you have to scrape up some cash for. And then you can go through your city's public health department to get some tax-payer-funded fillings for your food-stamp-candy-rotted teeth.

 

[glockmail]

.....

I for one believe it should be taxed at a higher rate. We americans eat way to much processed food and junk....

You are advocating social engineering. I say just make all taxes equal and low. Let the consumer decide for himself.

 

[glockmail]

That's kind of the point though. I don't think foodstamps should cover these items because they're not really food.....

I think food stamps should cover bags of rice over ten pounds, milk, eggs, bread, peanut butter, grape jelly, dried beans, large bags of frozen veggies, and no-name hot dogs. That way there will be an incentive to get a job, and the cost to the public will be minimal.

 

[Gawdfadda1]

1. Taxes went up on tobacco, so why not taxes on alcohol?

2. Death row inmates sit for years. I see Hussein whacked in 24 -48 hours. Why are we not doing the same, instead of paying to feed and house them?

3. Intravenous drug users and gays seem to be promoting the AIDS epidemic by their lifestyle. Surely something can be done there as well, although I am not sure you all would like my personal resolution for that. But why am I paying to help these losers?

4. Who makes the rules? The alcoholic politicians! Why do they get free benefits like childcare and such, when we have to pay for it.

I could go on, but I have real work to do now, lol.

Rick Perry, bite me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[ScreamingEagle]

You are advocating social engineering. I say just make all taxes equal and low. Let the consumer decide for himself.

Agree with that! Sames goes for health care insurance...however I can see making it mandatory like auto insurance. Insurance companies need to have a big enough pool of customers in order to survive.

Since Americans change their jobs regularly and many move from state to state over their lifetimes, the government and health insurance industry gets to "monitor" your health and lifestyle and payments because every time you move or get a new job you have to get new health insurance. This means they can jack up your payments because you've gained weight or had an operation or whatever. This method just makes you vulnurable.

What we need is to be able to buy individual health insurance on a free market that can stay with an individual for his life as long as you want it and you can pay the premiums. If you lose a job there should be temporary coverage for covering your premiums. Your health insurance should not be dependent on your employer, nor on where you live - it should be portable.

If you got individual health insurance (as an adult) while you were young and healthy and stayed with an insurance company for life, your premiums should remain reasonably priced throughout your lifetime and not be jacked-up because you got a health problem and changed a job. If an insurance company went out of business, then I could see government regulation stepping in to protect your coverage if that happened.

 

[glockmail]

Agree with that! Sames goes for health care insurance........

I think you are on the right track. The government needs to deregulate the industry to make it more competitive and offer a broader range of service. Maybe make a $5000 deductible mandatory. Gotta get people off the idea that their insurance should pay for maintenance, as this is a major cost of the industry. Just the paper work costs of tracking all those $50 visits is astronomical. Do you call your insurance company when your car need an oil change? Of course not, so why do it when you have a friggin’ cold? Probably put a cap on it as well maybe with some industry-wide “risk pool” to pay for huge problems.

 

[Bern80]

Medical conditions can lead to obesity as well, with hypothyroidism being a common cause.

As for the smokers and the slobs...they can pay.

I didn't know that. I have mild hypothyroidism and can't gain weight to save my life. Now I feel gipped and want someone to pay for it. SOMEONE HAS TO PAY DAMMIT!!