Why aren't smokers or very overweight people charged more for healthcare coverage?

Question

Since smoking and overeating / lack of exercise are choices, not something like a disease or other affliction that one does not have much control over, I wonder why Healthcare coverage providers cannot charge more for people who are by their own choices / habits, increasing the cost of the services for everyone.

Answer 1

Smokers ARE charged more for health insurance. Please check your facts first. Look on insurance websites and see what the policies say.

Answer 2

Why should they be? Where would it end? Do you start charging people who have unprotected sex more....aren't they at a risk for getting STD's? Women charged more because they have the ability to get pregnant? If you have the luck of the draw and get cancer or some day need to have surgery for something you could or couldn't control, you'll be glad you have insurance. What raises the costs of insurance is providing care for the uninsured. You would be amazed at the amount of people who come in everyday who have serious injuries and illnesses, need surgery and months of followup rehab and care and don't have insurance...who do you think pays for that??? The hospitals have indigent funds, they pay the patients bill but pass the costs on in other ways. The hospital has to raise the cost of the prices for the person WHO DOES have insurance and who will pay.

Answer 3

Most never see the people, so healthcare doesn't know who is overweight. Also, it's easy to "hide" smoking, it's not like a healthcare represenative is going to walk around seeing if someone lights it up. And one can always lie when filling out the healthcare forms. Also they have to find a way to define overweight. A 6'7 man could weight 300 pounds but not be overweight.

Answer 4

Congratulations. You must be so glad that you are perfect.

If Big Brother starts to charge smokers and overweight people more for health care, then they better add alcohol drinkers, drug users, people who stand on chairs to reach something out of the high cabinets, people who run with scissors and knives, gun owners, anyone who rides a motorcycle, anyone who rides a bicycle or skates without a helmet, people who don't wear their seat belt, people who don't look both ways before crossing the street, people who don't have safety mats in their bath tubs, etc, etc. Are you picking up what I'm putting down?

Answer 5

Are you kidding? THEY DO.

The company I work at requires us to have a physical done by a physician andwe fill out a lifestyle profile. The results of these together determine the rates of our healthcare and how much of it the employee has to contribute in order to get benefits. I was happy because being a healthy, normal weight, non-smoker, my coverage costs me a bit less every month.

Answer 6

Yes, smokers are penalized in many instances. It's similar to car insurance - if you have no accidents, you get a few dollars less than before on the next premium.

Answer 7

the same reason that .... people who have multiple sexual partners and develop cervical cancer, people who are road runners and develop achilles problems, people who are mountain climbers and have frost bite, people who work outside and get skin cancer....... whre would it stop? Its a can of worms. Any illness is horrible, lets help not attribute blame.

Answer 8

Smokers, overweight people, those in "high risk" professions, those who have "high risk" hobbies, all are charged for life and health insurance.

If you think they are not, you are wrong.

Answer 9

cause this is a free country and no one has the right to tell me what i can eat, drink, or smoke! and no one has the right to discriminate against me for doing so! mind your own business!