Safeway has the healthcare answer, but government is in the way.

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SciFiBoy said:

TheRealMafoo said:

SciFiBoy said:

both

in principle, if what you do to yourself is within the law, you shouldnt be punished for it. 

 

So let me build this scenario, and ask you what you would do.

 

Lets say you employ 100 people, and each cost $4,000 a year to insure, and you pay half. So they pay $2,000, and you pay $2,000. Every employee is overweight and smokes.

 

You realize, that if each person was healthier, the cost would really be $2000 each. So, you tell your employees that if they get into a healthy weight, don't smoke, the cost will go down to half.

 

Let's say half your employees take you up on that offer, and start working out every day, and go the the hard work of giving up smoking, and in the end, for those 50 employees, the cost drops in half.

 

What do you then do? 

 

Do you charge the people who didn't do anything the same ($2000 them/$2000 you), and then the people who now cost half to cover less ($1000 them/$1000 you)?

 

or

 

Do you average it out to $3,000 each, and them charge all $1,500 and pay $1,500?

neither

my company and the employees pay taxes, and in return, get free access to healthcare regardless, but you already know that i would do this, so its kinda moot to ask me.

so far as i am aware, the NHS in this regard already works this way, theyre not allowed to turn people down if theyre ill, dosent matter why there ill.

essentially, (assuming, it works as i said above) i wouldnt change a thing about this element of the NHS if elected.

Your first post asked a question about something nobody was talking about.

Your second and third posts were questioning how you could know what people do in their day to day lives...when nobody cares what they specifically are doing, it only matters how healthy they are.  Nobody is talking about survellience or big brother.   We are talking about a doctor and scientific medical tests (the ones people already take when they go to the doctor) being used to assess your health risks, and thus your costs to insure.  You can tell if someone smokes, drinks, is addicted to drugs, etc.. pretty easily from some basic tests among a myriad of other risk factors.

Your third posts asks why doing something that isn't illegal should punished.  To which I have to ask...What are you smoking?    They aren't being punished..they are paying for their healthcare. If you go into a McDonalds and order everything on the menu should you pay more than someone who orders a Happy meal?  Of course you should...and the same applies here.  An unhealthy person will need more medical treatment and thus their costs are higher than that of the fit person who needs less treatment.  It's not punishment...its paying for what you get.

Your most recent post (quoted above) is just avoiding the issue and adding static to the thread about healthcare plans that aren't the subject of discussion here.  We are discussing a health insurance methodology that can reduce costs by promoting healthy behavior.  If you don't want to discuss it and give an answer to Mafoo's question then don't...but don't ignore it and interject unrelated subjects to distract from the topic at hand.