State to Tax Your Fat ...Are You Kidding Me!
In the news, beginning in January 2009, Alabama state employees will be required to receive medical screenings for several conditions, including body mass index (BMI). Those who are considered obese -- along with exhibiting other negative health factors -- will have a year to get in shape. Failure to meet the requirements will raise the employee's premium $25 per month.
Are you Kidding me! No, I'm not and the state of our health is no joke. The motto today is "play or you pay." Critics will say that this is cruel and unusual punishment and discriminates against employees who are overweight or have a genetic disposition for obesity. Or, is this new policy an incentive to create a workforce of employees who are fit for duty, lowering the cost to insure them? According to the CDC, Alabama ranks as the second most obese state - is this title one to wear with admiration, and how does the state of their health tax state services for disability benefits, unemployment, and medical care?
How Much Does It Cost?
Research shows how much more obese employees, in comparison to healthy employees, cost employers to provide health insurance benefits, or worker's compensation claims associated with injuries on the job. In a study conducted by Duke University, overweight workers were more likely to have claims involving injuries to the back, wrist, arm, neck, shoulder, hip, knee and foot than other employees.Common Ground: Employees and Employers
A recent survey conducted by the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the University of Chicago, partnered on the research with the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, showed that:
- 80% of employees, regardless of weight, believe healthy lifestyles/weight management programs belong in the workplace.
- 67% of employers are concerned about obesity's effect on medical claims expenses.
- 93% of employers see obesity as a preventable condition and due to poor lifestyle choices.
- Fewer than half of employers believe their company has given enough attention to the problem of obesity.
Where Do You Stand?
As uncomfortable as this issue is to discuss, it is one that will be the focus of health and prevention as they play a greater, integral part of our lifestyles. More companies and organizations are exercising their authority and taking advantage of federal rules that allow them to increase the insurance payments of employees according to their lifestyle.Question: Given the cost of healthcare and what employers pay to offer this benefit, what kind of incentives/penalties are fair and equal for employees who are obese?
About the author
Renzie Richardson, Independent Health and Wellness Consultant, Be Healthy for Life, LLC. For more information, call (404) 819-9549 or email at renzier@be-healthy-for-life.com
Posted by Renzie Richardson at 1/15/2009 4:32 PM 
Categories: wellness, overweight, tax, injury, employee, HEALTH, healthy, health and wellness, prevention
Categories: wellness, overweight, tax, injury, employee, HEALTH, healthy, health and wellness, prevention
I actually would support this if they tried to force mandatory healthcare on us. If I have to give my tax dollars to the government to bungle healthcare then it is a step in the right direction at least as far as not paying for someone else's poor choices.
Please note I am against this otherwise. If you want to make bad choices and be excessively overweight and unhealthy that is your choice. If I have to pay for you then it is no longer your choice.
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It's a sad thought that instead of improving the health care system, they are thinking about increasing payments on health care insurance to overweight people.
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This is crazy if your fat,but for those people that are healthy this right to help those fat people to get physically healthy.
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