Health Insurance

What do you think about making people pay more for health insurance if they are oveweight, eat wrong things or smoke?

Great idea, as it would make people think about their lifestyle and take more responsibility for their diet and well being...

How do you define overweight and wrong foods? Smoking, I can see. There isn't much controversy there, but being overweight is a tricky thing. Reports come out relatively often (and quickly squelched), that indicate "moderately overweight" people are often healthier than those whose weight is "normal." It seems to me that one might realize that today's "normal," which is a good 10-15% lower than the "normal" of 30-40 years ago, is actually underweight and unhealthy by comparison.

And we are constantly, these days, re-evaluating which foods are healthy and which are not.

One of the biggies in the current health care discussions has to do with "pre-existing conditions." I'm afraid weight and eating habits could suffer from the same prejudices.

Just me.

Ann

What do you mean there isn't much controvery there? I started smoking full-time because the United States government gave me free smokes by the cartonful. Now the same government should charge me more for insurance? I don't care, though, because I get health care from the VA and it's all free. In fact I'm heading for a free visit with the primary care doctor right now. Nothing wrong, they just like to keep checking you over and asking if you feel suicidal.

Nice of them to put the idea of suicide into your mind. Are they trying to save money?

Dick,

Tell them you feel homicidal--give them pause for thought.

Toy with them, see if they are even listening to you.

I got so tired of saying my birthdate, I began to change the year.

I would say 1347, just to see if they were awake. They were.

Another question I loved was, " Do you feel safe in your home?"

I answered, "Yes."

Then, 'Who lives with you?"

I answered, "My husband."

"Are you afraid of him?'

"Just when he tries to push me out the window."

"No joking allowed."

"Aw Phooey!"

I place obesity in the same class as smoking. Both can be controlled with will power. As for statistics, check this out.
http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/o/obesity/deaths.htm

First, there is a big difference between what is considered "overweight" and "obese." A BMI of 25 is considered "normal" today. A BMI of 30 is said to be "obese."

However, the BMI doesn't take in to account the difference between fat weight and muscle weight. By using the standard means for determining BMI, a muscular male who works out consistently could easily fall into the "obese" range.

"Normal" weights for a woman of 5'6" can range from 115 to 150 depending on the methods used and/or the reason for determining "normal."

Of course, most cases of extreme obesity put one at risk. Even there, there are more than a few documented cases of overweight, even mildly obese people who pass all the other tests for good health.

Fighting fat is big business, and a lot of money is being made from the current attitudes toward obesity, money from plans and products that often do more harm than good. I still go back to the point I made earlier. Who is to decide what a healthy weight for an individual is, and how far over that ideal must one go for them to be at risk?

There's an old song that goes "Everybody's gotta have somebody to look down on," and today, people who are not considered an ideal weight are becoming the favorite scapegoat.

Everybody - everybody - has a right to decent health care.

Sorry, but it's something I feel strongly about.

Ann

And obesity is a condition that has many, varied and complex causes. It is almost never a simple matter of willpower.

Ann

Ann,
I too believe that everyone has a right to decent healthcare.
But the care on one's health is an issue that is as controversial as politics and religion.
To go through life depriving oneself of enjoyment is no way to live. For some, eating is their enjoyment. For some, smoking or drinking is their enjoyment. To condem someone for the life they choose is wrong. To evaluate problems caused by over indulglence is dealing with facts, and that was my point.
There are exceptions to every rule. The exceptions you mentioned are not in the majority.
Who determines what overweight is? Personally, I don't consider a person that is moderately overweight as fat or obese. Being pleasantly plump, being able to do everything one wants to do without restrictions caused by weight, is seldom a health problem.

Truce? This is a no win subject.

Truce.

This is the second time lately that I've allowed myself to get ticked at something you've said, Abe. My bad. One thing, though, when I express my feelings, it's easy to let go of them.

Just one other point, and I will do that. People die from anorexia and bulimia, too. I've been bulimic, and I don't ever want to go back there. This is a complex subject without simple answers.

I'm done, and I apologize for the intensity of my response.

(with a good German beer!)

Ann

Remind me Ann, what was the first thing that ticked you off? Perhaps it was a misunderstanding.

Abe,

It was here:

http://www.publishedauthors.org/chatter-box-f3/hot-t3348-15.htm#50785

Ann

Ann,
I suppose I could have worded it differently, but meant what I said.
I have three brothers living in central Florida. It is hot and humid. When I visited in the summer, I couldn't take a walk during the day because it was too hot. When I went early in the morning, the humming of AC's could be heard everywhere with windows closed and blinds drawn. When we left the Air Conditioned house we got into an Air Conditioned car. When we arrived at the mall, we rushed inside where it was exceptionally cold.
When I asked my brother how he could live this way, he replied, "It's better than paying large gas bills to keep warm in the winter."
"So what's the difference?" I replied. "You have high electric bills from the AC's, don't you? And when do you get a chance to exercise?
He didn't answer the exercise question and said, "I just like it in Florida."

As I remarked in my post, if you like it hot, etc., etc., good for you. That is assuming that there is a choice. For people who have no choice, my post was incomplete.

Abe,

I just like it in Texas.

Ann

Let me weigh in on the subject.

I don't think smokers should be treated like second class citizens because they choose to smoke cigarettes. I don't think they should be charged more, or taxed bigger, or made to stay out of restraurants and other places because they smoke. This is especially true with government buildings, where the taxes on tobacco helped to erect and maintain most of them. I have long advocated for any government building that refuses to allow smoking inside to have to turn down any money they might get from tobacco. In Tennessee, where I grew up, tobacco has been a big portion of the tax base for generations, and yet, you can't go in a public building and enjoy a cigarette. This is because non smokers have a huge club they hold over smokers, and they don't mind conking them on the head every chance they get. Recently, Florida levied an extra $1 per pack on cigarettes, claiming that it was to help people chose to stop smoking, as well as to pay for the extra care that smokers might require. Of course, I think that's BS. They wanted more money in their coffers, and smokers don't have a leg to stand on anymore.

If the government really wanted to do something about tobacco, all they have to do is make the growing, the harvesting, and the production of all tobacco products illegal. They will never do that, because they want the cash cow to keep giving billions of dollars in tobacco milk every year. That's called being hypocritical at the highest attainable level.

I am waiting for some silly ass private study to set the boundaries on other things, just as they have on tobacco. What will people do when they say that the acceptable weight limit for a person that is 5'7" is not over 150 lbs. Then they tax every pound over that, they won't let you have health insurance, and you won't be allowed to go into any building anywhere until you lose the weight. They will decide what weight is too much, and there won't be anything you can do about it. Close down every fast food restrurant in the country, and have the check out people at every supermarket check your basket for food you are not allowed to buy if you are over a certain weight.

And how about the alcohol industry? Put an extra $1 a bottle tax on all beer sold, and $5 more on wine and liquor. Close down all of the places that sell liquor by the drink, and make it a crime to drink a beer in public.

I'm all for equality, but only when it is across the board. The laws covering the use of cigarettes inside were sufficient for years and years, and should still be in place. How did we ever allow so much power to be placed into the hands of so many people who have no tolerance for anyone other than themselves?

Dear E Don,
Neither you nor I weigh enough to have ay weight to throw around. I figure you would need at least 300 pounds and me a 250 would do. hahahahahahahahah.

Love,
Betty

Good Post, Don.

E.Don,

You are so right--it is ridiculously outrageous.

I have always wondered why they got so upset over smoking--it is drinking that kills a lot of people.

I agree, Don. They did try Prohibition, of course, and never was it easier to get a drink. It created many new drinkers because of the romantic angle and it also gave us organized crime. Now because of the high taxes on cigarettes they have created a huge black market network.