While waiting in line at the store this AM, the guy in front of me is *****ing that his benefits cost more then other people in his dept, all because he smokes. He said it is “discrimination” all while he is getting a carton of cigs. I felt the need to beat this guy. This isn’t the first time I heard someone complaining about this, it just blows me away.

Anyways.

Do you think it is OK to charge people more for there benefits if they smoke? If they are overweight? Or anything else that THEY did to hurt themselves so it requires more money to take care of them? How do you judge who gets charged more?


Being a business owner I FEEL the impact of rising health care costs, as we look at another 25-30% increase again.

Originally posted by jpa2400
While waiting in line at the store this AM, the guy in front of me is *****ing that his benefits cost more then other people in his dept, all because he smokes. He said it is “discrimination” all while he is getting a carton of cigs. I felt the need to beat this guy. This isn’t the first time I heard someone complaining about this, it just blows me away.
You should have.......... :D . Just kidding .....
Originally posted by jpa2400
Do you think it is OK to charge people more for there benefits if they smoke? If they are overweight? Or anything else that THEY did to hurt themselves so it requires more money to take care of them? How do you judge who gets charged more?
I vote for yes. Let me talk about smokers. Analysis of the studies shows that the related adverse effects are:
decreased bone density
lumbar disk problems
higher risk of sustaining hip and wrist fractures
a high risk of failure of bone fusion in fractures
low back pain
decreased wound healing ability
increase risk of infection
lung cancer
heart disease
bronchitis
emphysema
weak immune system

Study also has proofed that smokers tend to perform slower than the non-smokers at work, because the toxic decrease the amount of oxygen available for the brain. You can not concentrate properly and easy to forget things. The risks of smokers to see doctors are higher than the non-smokers.
My 2 cents why you need to charge more smokers.

I used to be a smoker for 13 years. Marlboro Medium.

We charge higher car insurance rates to drivers who crash a lot and get tickets, why not charge more for health insurance to people who abuse their bodies.

With due respect to those who are overweight, there is NO valid reason to be massively overweight. Our abundance of food and sedentary jobs in the U.S. don't help at all, but that just means we must be stronger to overcome all the temptations, and disciplined to do exercise. Some will talk about 'genetic' reasons, but I've never seen fat people in those concentration camp pictures or in Ethiopia, for example.

I think insurance should be proportionate to how overweight people are - that would be the best diet imaginable. 400 lbs? Your insurance will be worse than your mortgage.

A smoker? Pay up.

Bad driving record? ALSO pay more HEALTH insurance.

Insurance premiums are based on risk, for example a smoker is more likely to get lung cancer or heart disease. A bad driver is more likely to get into an accident. That's why they have to pay more.

In regards to obesity, a study shows that 1 in 50 people now are at least 100 pounds overweight, quadruple what it was in the 80s. Are people all of a sudden inheriting a gene that makes them obese? No, people are eating way too much of the wrong food and not exercising enough.

Report: Fat Americans getting even fatter, http://www.cnn.com/2003/HEALTH/diet.fitness/10/13/extreme.obesity.ap/index.html

This is a great topic.... I think JPA and I have discussed this before on here, and I still agree 100%!

-Ethan