Heard about this on the radio:
It basically boils down to state employees in Alabama. If you're obese (based on body mass index) in Jan 2010 and don't see a doctor, have a screening and work towards being "healthier" by your next screening, then in 2011 you will pay $25/month in health insurance. Hmmm. The state claims they are worried about the health of their people. They did the same thing regarding smokers. But do you think they are really worried about the health of employees? Or are the worried about the bottom line?
The news story states:
"A recent study suggested that about half of overweight people and nearly a third of obese people have normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels, while about a quarter of people considered to be normal weight suffer from the ills associated with obesity."
"A recent study suggested that about half of overweight people and nearly a third of obese people have normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels, while about a quarter of people considered to be normal weight suffer from the ills associated with obesity."
But here's the thing. There are plenty of unhealthy lifestyles that have nothing to do with weight. Where do they draw the line? What if you work or play outside without wearing sunscreen? Or have more than one alcoholic beverage per day? Or are prone to anxiety? Or have higher blood pressure. Or work with circular saws in their spare time? Or wear high heels for 8 hours a day? Are we going to have to pay more unless we take pictures of ourselves putting on sunscreen, start having blood alcohol screenings every night that we give to our employers, somehow try to live a life that creates peace and not stress, and wear Dr. Scholls all the time and start video-blogging our spare time to show that we are doing our best to do nothing that could cause injury, unhealth or death?
A recent study shows that people who climb mountains are more likely to fall off of them and injure themselves than those who don't. Another study shows that people who drive are more likely to have crash related injuries such as whiplash than those who walk. Of course those who walk are more likely to get hit by a car than those who just stay home and sit on the couch. See what I mean?
1 comment:
I bet they evaluated what their biggest pay-out costs are, and it was determined that smoking and obesity cost the company the most in health-related insurance claims. Can't blame them for trying to do something about it, I guess. I hope I don't gain any more weight, though! I think there's some fatness discrimination in our future. Airlines are already talking about how they can make obese people buy two seats. I hope they figure this out, actually, because once, I was sandwiched between these two women, sisters, who were very overweight and had colds, but neither of them wanted my middle seat. Honestly, it was miserable. I couldn't avoid being pinned to the seat on both sides by their giant arms, and I could feel their sickness germs crawling on me! (You know I hate germs.) Ok, going on a tangent now. Peace!
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