Employees starting to pay for poor health

[kstewart33]

Are you obese or have high blood pressure? Your insurance may go up
The Associated Press

Updated: 11:22 a.m. MT Sept 10, 2007
CINCINNATI - First they tried nudging. Now companies are penalizing workers who have high health risks such as obesity and high blood pressure or cholesterol as insurance costs climb.

Lee Morrison, 51, doesn’t mind the push, which came in the form of added insurance charges from his employer, Western & Southern Financial Group.

“I knew if I wanted to be healthier and pay less, it was up to me to do something about it,” said Morrison, who has lost 54 pounds and lowered his body mass index enough to earn refunds the past two years.

A small number of companies have linked health factors to what employees pay for benefits, but the practice is expected to grow now that some federal rules have been finalized, spelling out what’s allowed by law. Employee advocates worry that other anti-discrimination laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act won’t cover the person who is 20 or http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20625381/30 pounds overweight.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20625381/

[RavensChick]

1. Thanks for the info

Thankfully my cholesterol is normal and my bp is doing better since I stopped smoking. All I gotta do is lose some weight and I'll be good to go!

[MissB]

2. Compare this to England's approach, where they reward your doctor

for *helping* you get things under control (blood pressure, weight, etc).

[Wildewolfe]

3. Great....

... so everyone that's born with congenital high blood pressure, high cholesterol, has diebetes etc., will start out penalized until they get it under control as a new higher under plans like that. How can that NOT be discriminatory? Without health care and meds that stuff doesn't "control".

Yes I know it does not say that specifically, but the action is implied by the rest of the article and the known greed of the insurers.

Everytime I read about something like this it just makes me think of the movie the Incredibles a few years ago and the insurance supervisor. /sigh

[scorpiogirl]

4. Yep.

My husband, who's 33, has hereditary high blood pressure but is a normal weight. I wonder how they would approach that? He takes meds every day to keep it regulated.

[jody]

5. Given that employees pay directly or indirectly for health insurance, should they pay for those who

intentionally increase their risk, e.g. smoking, drinking, drug use, failure to exercise, and other lifestyle choices?

Should home owners pay to subsidize the insurance cost of someone who builds a home on a California mountainside known for mud slides and brush firs?

I support the House's passing of H.R. 493, "Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2007", which prohibits discrimination on the basis of genetic information with respect to health insurance and employment that passed with 420 Yeas, 3 Nays, and 9 Not Voting and the senate will consider the bill.

Genetic discrimination however, is different from risk caused by a person's choice of lifestyle.

[devilgrrl]

6. Will rates go up if employee's health is adversely affected by the employers?

I'm serious. I swear it's the place of employment that makes people ill to begin with.