I'm not a smoker nor fat. A tobacco surcharge cannot be offset by the subsidies available through the government-run marketplaces. Ethics Consult: Potentially Hasten Baby's Death to Ease Suffering? These people should be paying more money for health insurance. A) Yes! Founded in 2010, CCI is the webs premier globalindependentnews source for compliance, ethics, risk and information security. So if you can get people to quit these expensive habits how in the hell are you hurting them? Most and least expensive trucks to insure, How to find out if someone has life insurance, Best health insurance for college students. (As usual, check state and local laws to be sure.) Is PFS Benefit Enough to Support Upfront Transplant in Multiple Myeloma? While quitting smoking won't directly reduce your health insurance premiums, it can reduce the cost of your overall healthcare. The folks behind Obamacare thought theyd figured out how to respect everyones rights, by giving health insurance companies the ability to charge higher premiumsa surchargefor smokers, up to 50% higher in some parts of the country. How will the fiscal cliff affect the way you handle your money. Read Should Ethicists Be at the Table in Public Health Policy Deliberations? Yes! 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. Smokers do not currently pay more for health insurance premiums, due to Australia's community-rated health insurance system. No one, not even the near dead, should pay MORE to these vultures. Health insurance companies are beginning to act more and more like banks. If they quit smoking they save at least the $2190 and their rates will go down, so explain to me why this is bad. Heres where the tobacco surcharge runs into problems. Third, some might argue that incentivizing smokers to quit is unjustified, paternalistic interference in personal autonomy. Don't destroy me, it was just an interesting thought I had when thinking about government health care. Our politicians need to stop and think about the people who are working to take care of this country and stop handing out free money to the individuals who don't want to work. We don't punish drug users or alcoholics by charging them more because of their chemical dependence so I dont see any sense in singling out fat people and Smokers for their bad habits. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. You may change your billing preferences at any time in the Customer Center or call If quitting smoking was easy, everyone would do it, right? Last week, Dallas County in Texas joined the growing ranks of employers that charge employees who smoke a higher monthly health insurance premium than employees who don't light up. They do, Jack. If you drive reckless you have to pay more but if you follow the speed limit and drive responsibly you pay less. This site uses cookies. There are two main ethical arguments for charging smokers higher insurance rates. Thoughts? But this is not true. We have been paying more for our health care for several years because we smoke. Education is a better tactic by health care companies. Lord knows this country needs both. And, oh well, that's on you for not following the medical instructions.So, I guess yes it should. By charging smokers higher health insurance rates, insurance companies can make people pay a price for the risks they take. Should fertile women have to pay more for health insurance than women who can't reproduce? Of course they should pay more. When insurance companies price smokers out of their products, we all pay. Why are we paying more and getting less? Here, in fact, is an estimate of how tobacco surcharges influence insurance enrollment rates among smokers and non-smokers. When you apply for health insurance, you are required to report whether or not you are a smoker. Due to the increased risk, those who smoke can pay more for their monthly premium. And critics of higher rates for smokers say the practice can make health insurance unaffordable for many, especially those with lower incomes. Wal-Mart, which insures more than 1 million people, is one such company. If you get a lot of speeding/reckless driving tickets or accidents you paay more for auto insurrance-same principle. And harmful behaviors and habits that contribute directly to increased medical bills are a natural, and tempting, target. But remember, smoking is more common among low-income populations, meaning those people have a harder time paying for insurance. It was MY CHOICE to go and buy cigarettes as it was my choice to quit. charge higher insurance premiums to employees who smoke, and some companies refuse to hire smokers. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Why would us healthier employees have to foot their hiking rate of insurance for them? By the 1980s, smokers were already paying more for life insurance than their nonsmoking counterparts. That doesn't make any sense. Instead, if they can afford insurance but choose not to purchase it, they pay a penalty. YES and I say that as an addicted smoker. The statements, opinions, or conclusions expressed here do not necessarily represent the statements, opinions or conclusions of the National Institute for Environmental Health Science, the National Institutes of Health, or the United States government. I know, I know, he shouted while furiously waving His Charging smokers higher health insurance premiums is no more objectionable than imposing taxes on tobacco products, alcohol, guns, or gasoline. If youre coming to Australia on a temporary 600 visa, Overseas Visitor Health Cover (OVHC) is health insurance that cov From dentists to optometrists, its nice to build a relationship and enjoy that personal touch. If this is fair, then why not have Phillip Morris kick in? While your question is to broad, my general response is yes; as do certain persons pay more for life, car, homeowners etc insurance. Welcome to CCI. Nobody gets out of here alive We should ALL pay LESS for healthcare period. In the case of weight gain I'm not so sure that can all be attributed to bad behavior. Why should we pay pay for others' poor choices? But unfortunately it is not popular across the country if govt. Quit smoking; start working out. Sure as a smoker i will pay more along with the fat people, But dont stop there lets make all pay more the ones that drink beer, or work in the sun all day, the ones that eat fast food for lunch, how about the cops and firemen to they are at high risk lets not stop untill we all pay more that will surly solve the problem.. You don't have to be rich to eat healthy, exercise, and give up smoking. We are delighted that you'd like to resume your subscription. Health insurance companies continue to hike premiums and co-pays unfettered. How about diabetics, cancer surviors, the list is endless. Four-fifths of states follow that protocol, though most employer-based . What about motorcyclists or people who jog at night wearing all black like an asshole? 'Pacing' for Long COVID; China Reports 60K COVID Deaths; Abortion Jury in Virginia? This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. And where would you draw the line and how would you adjust rates? Why not address the problem which is "lack of health care" or "the gross expense of health care" rather than take a view that would increase the expense? We all know that if we do the right things (exercise, eat properly, stop smoking, drink in moderation and take medications to prevent disease from getting worse) we will all spend less on healthcare. Once implemented, the impact of the differential should be monitored to determine if it results in a disparate impact on employees in protected groups such as minorities and specific ethnicities. For your bank account? We Can Do More to Help Our Patients' Caregivers, Physicians vs Patients: Providing Abortion Care Post-Roe. does this. But, that's a crummy example to set for the vast majority of us who don't. Tobacco use is using any tobacco product an average of four or more times a week within the last six months. Secondly fat people don't stay fat because they are starving. Do you really think about these questions before you post? Absolutely they should. You'll be able to breathe better. People who play football since they're going to be brain damaged over time? Live a healthy lifestyle and you won't have to pay more. Don't they already pay more due the fact that they need more health care than a healthy person and therefore accumulate more medical bills than a healthy person? To be fair, policies adopted by employers or insurers would need to apply different rates to different smokers, depending on their individual risk. Some people might make excuses for them but overweight people violate one simple rule and it's basic math. According to the utilitarian argument, charging smokers more will encourage them to quit, which will improve public health and reduce societys smoking-related costs. The increased cost of cigarettes is the strongest influence in getting people to smoke. I'm one who believes those who are unhealthy should pay more. Information found on the CompareClub website is for general purposes only. Though I still occasionally meet someone who smokes, the behavior has mostly retreated from populations of higher socioeconomic status and has burrowed itself and its destruction in low income families. A close examination of the arguments for and against this policy reveals that it is not. Lastly I don't want to hear about poor people being harmed by this. thank yu. If we are going to hold people financially responsible for their unhealthy choices, lets not pretend that obesity is somehow holier than emphysema. Policies should account for individual variations in health risk and may need to be revised if they produce have unintended negative consequences for smokers access to care and health. However, before employers can levy the surcharge they must give smokers an opportunity to qualify for nonsmoker rates by offering a way for them to quit. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. If those at a higher risk paid more for health cover, it would theoretically reduce the cost for other people. I think our government should ban smoking. First, the surcharge makes insurance more expensive, meaning it is harder for people to afford. When surcharges are steep, lots of smokers forgo insurance, despite receiving subsidies and/or facing tax penalties. Medicare: How it works with other insurance, Key difference between Medicare and Medicaid, Best home and auto insurance bundle companies, How to get your health insurer to pay for your weight-loss or bariatric surgery. After all, I get my car insurance rates lowered if I go without an accident or claim, and my home insurance is cut by having a security system. We have no control over these companies, their offers, website content, products/services, or the availability and nature of their products/services. Charging smokers higher health insurance rates is popular and legal, but is it ethical? Not surprisingly, implementing a differential does involve some risk. Find out more about life insurance for smokers here. By the number of cigarettes a person smokes in a day? It is only fair that those who have negative behavior pay more for their health care. Smoking? You just have to give a damn. Why not if your bad habit increases your health care costs. Maybe we can answer this by expanding your question: what if a person is an alcoholic? In a society where brand marketing has glorified unhealthy habits including smoking, video games and fast food over the years, it seems as a society we are struggling to correct these mistakes. YES! Charging individuals rates based on their risk helps to ensure that money paid out from the pool will not exceed money paid into the pool. Fat people and smokers should pay more absolutly. The table below shows the price comparison of a smoker vs a non-smoker in good health. Jack, I'm glad you brought that up. It is certainly stated to only increase costs and get more money to the insurance companies instead of trying to influence healthier behavior. Exor Puerto Rico, USA. But should smokers pay more for health insurance? The four of us were so taken by the show that we wrote these reflections on its important ethical themes. HORRIBLE! Quitting is hard, and you don't have to go it alone. One other aspect of having smokers on the workforce is cost. Luis Rosales. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. STAY CONNECTED WITH THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS IN HEALTH, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS, Wall-Mart charges smokers more than any other company. This is simply the legitimizing, and establishing of a class system here in the U.S. via the Health Care system! After all, like the commercial states, who doesn't want 50% more cash! Tobacco taxes increase by 12.5% each year, making Australia the third most expensive country in the world for tobacco. The health insurance industry unexpectedly began to support a plan for universal health insurance for American citizens. The cost of health cover has been steadily rising over the last several years, and Australians are getting frustrated. Should Texas be allowed to secede from the union? Fat people should be treated the same as smokers and be denied access to restaurants and fattening foods as they create a hazard by clogging aisles and doorways and overlapping seating. Behaviors and habits that contribute directly to increased medical bills are a natural, and tempting,.. Is for general purposes only ethics Consult: Potentially Hasten Baby 's Death to Ease Suffering the. Tickets or accidents you paay more for health insurance CompareClub website is general... 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