Should We Have a Fat Tax?
Dave at the Crisper has an interesting post on the possibility of taxing those with a high BMI (Body Mass Index). Should we also consider a tax on crappy genetics or how about just plain bad luck? Because hey, my BMI is 20 and I'm not doing so good in the health department. Could it just be that some people find fat people offensive? I wonder how far the food Nazis are willing to go so that they do not have to bear the unsightliness of the overweight?
posted by Helen at 7:11 PM
26 Comments:
A fat-head tax might be more effective.
Since there is a genetic component to metabolism and fat storage this could be considered a tax based largely on race. When are people going to realize that nanny-statism is just totalitarianism with some emotional manipulation thrown in?
sissy,
Yes, for every stupid thing that comes out of a bureaucrat's mouth, there should be a tax to be used to buy pizza for those of us who are forced to listen to this stupidity.
So would anorexics get a tax credit?
I guess the tax rate would follow a catenary curve. Higher at excessively low and high BMI with the nadir shifting inline with body type fashion shifts.
Of course, if you really want to impose a tax that falls upon the poor, this one would be perfect. People working hard just to make ends meet don't have time to spend in the gym or pay the high prices at Whole Foods.
And if we're going to selectively tax people based on their BMI... why not based on their race then? Maybe men should be taxed more heavily than women? Imagine the possibilities.
One other note: BMI is a horrible measure of body composition. Simply being quite muscular can easily put your BMI into the 'obese' range. If you want a fat tax, base it on something real, like Body Fat Percentage, not something stupid, like BMI.
I have another better suggestion, rather than a 'fat' tax, how about allowing medical insurers to charge a fat surcharge to cover the increased medical risks?
they have been discussing this in the Uk, one solution is to tax junk food.
but follow the money, the problem is, they dont realise that you can be fat and healthy, my bp and cholesterol and everything else is normal which shocked my dr.
plus they keep lowering the bmi levels, so what was ok 2 years ago is now obese. i am fat but healthy, fat is demonised all the time, how many people suffer from anorexia/bullimia now since all this fear about fat people.
http://www.tcsdaily.com/Article.aspx?id=022805D
One of the most problematic, covered by both employer and federal health insurers, is weight loss "treatments." The "costs of obesity" are cited as justification for such mandates, as well as a plethora of government public health, anti-obesity programs. But the profit motives and special interests, rather than science, behind such initiatives are undeniable. Instrumental in getting coverage and tax deductions for weight loss treatments is the American Obesity Association, a lobbying organization for obesity-related businesses, whose sponsors include bariatric surgical groups, pharmaceutical companies, and weight loss programs like Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig. Among the most vocal advocates of employer anti-obesity "wellness programs," as well as higher insurance premiums for fat people, are groups such as the as the National Business Group on Health and its Institute on the Costs and Health Effects of Obesity, representing the interests of large corporations supplying their employees with health insurance. NBGH Board members also include the country's largest insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, weight loss programs, bariatric surgical suppliers, Health and Human Services officials, and other obesity-related interests.*
Never mind that weight loss interventions have long-term failure rates of nearly 99%, and directly cost the public an estimated $64 million, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Never mind that the diets and other weight loss measures actually put health in greater jeopardy, leaving people fatter and at higher risks for heart disease, cancers, osteoporosis and type 2 diabetes. We're also seeing more providers turn "to various kinds of managed care plans that attempt to produce better value through disease management, patient education, and utilization controls," notes Helms. In this case, fat people are being increasingly pressured to participate in corporate and government weight loss "wellness programs," whether they want to or not.
http://www.tcsdaily.com/article.aspx?id=010405I
Thanks to the NIH, the National Institute for Health in America, one night, magical night in 1997, 29 million Americans went to bed with average figures and actually woke up overweight
Matt LeBlanc, Joey, from Friends, he's 5'11, 218 pounds. That gives him a BMI of 30, which, according to the U.S. makes him obese.
While I'm repressing certain bodily urges in reaction to the idea of a fat tax, if they do go ahead with it then there should certainly be a scrawny tax too -- that's just not healthy either (as if I really know). And I'm pretty sure the rich supermodels could afford to pay it.
What quadrupole said. And do you also tax the fatties who have Cushings syndrome, or prader Willi, or have hypothyroidism?
I'm sure some brilliant politician will create a deduction for anyone with a specified "fat disease", as long as you fill out Schedule 345A, provide two years worth of medical documentation, a blood sample, and know the deduction exists in the first place.
This is the IRS after all... give them a little credit. ;)
Better than a fat tax, or taxing fattening foods, I say shift government subsidies that make crappy food to cheap toward making healthy food cheaper.
Subsidize the production of organic produce, not dairy, meat, the grains used for making meat.
Make having a burger and milkshake more expensive while making a stirfry cheaper..... no new taxes.
This is the body-worshipper's religion, remember. It's not just that they don't like to look at fat, it's the impiety of others that offends them.
Interesting coincidence. We had our Wellness Fair at work today, and the busybodies were out in full force. I suggested over at my own site that I should be allowed to give Citizenship Wellness and Spiritual Wellness fairs at taxpayer expense myself.
i think its partly the puritanical streak coming back, the puritans thought everything that was enjoyable was somehow sinful, (paraphrasing here).. so fat people must be greater sinners, because they must eat more, and eating is a sinful thing if you enjoy it
And you think people are dishonest on their income tax forms... hah!
but who decides who is at risk, the doctors, the government, you, your peers. i am perfectly healthy normal bp, normal cholesterol, in fact i am healthier than most, i just happen to be fat. not all fat people are fat due to them being slobs or couch potato's.. there is a genetic component to size.
and the idea that "government should stay out of the buisness of taxing this or that." thats how the government makes the money for social security, and other provisions.. government is tax, tax is government.. who gets the money you pay in taxes.. can you guess.
why not have a thin tax, since apparently all fat people buy lots of food and stuff, we are keeping the economy going, but thin people well they mustnt eat a lot so they will have more income left, and they arent helping the economy..
First the gov't should appoint a committee of scientists to determine how much fat on the human body is unhealthy, one standard applied to all. The findings are sent to every doctor in the country. Then everyone, man, woman and child, is required by law to be evaluated by a doctor each year and his/her body fat level noted (This would become part of an individual's national medical data base). If it's over the legal limit, a tax is assessed (the wealthy taxed at a higher rate, naturally). Anyone under the too-much-fat standard is given a credit on their income tax (for the moment). It could happen.
it doesnt take into account genetic variations, peggy in your idea anorexics will be rewarded, by paying less tax, and that wont cause any more anorexics would it.. and as everyone knows yo yo dieting, makes you put on MORE weight, so each year you would diet to lose weight during tax week, then your weight would go up, then you would go down next year.. and so on..
now the diet industry is worth something like $30 billion a year, this would increase that so much.
its insane isnt it..
We need Doctors that are going to actually study the body. Give them a grant and they will favor the payor. Now we see this new item CRP Protien that is more important than LDL-HDL factors. How can we tax people on things we do not understand or give value to actual risk. Take two 300 pound men one may live to be 100 and the other 35 there are more factors in life span than weight.
Also the country should tax weight lose clinics and drinks for making it easier to make you fat later in life.
Lots of denial on this page.
That's all I have to say.
This is retarted, The Fat Tax is relating to fatty foods, twinkies and such, NOT BODY TYPES. The idea that sodas and big macs would have a tax like ciggaretts and alchol have.
If we start to tax fat we might as well tax all the things in life that bring us pleasure,like smoking drinking and even having fun.
anonymous at 11:33 pm said: "This is retarted, The Fat Tax is relating to fatty foods, twinkies and such, NOT BODY TYPES. The idea that sodas and big macs would have a tax like ciggaretts and alchol have."
If you are right then this definitely changes the discussion.
There is a weight range that I find attractive; anorexics and really obese people look awful.
However, I do not think we should tax people based on their weight. We already have sales tax on food in most states and we don't need any new taxes. I do support higher insurance premiums and higher bills from hospitals if a person's weight increases risks during surgery.
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