New safety device: A tax on cupcakes
July 29, 2009 by Jim BurgerPosted in: Illnesses, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Worker health, Workers' comp
PDF The world isn’t fair. Some people can eat Twinkies all day, every day and never gain an ounce. Others say they gain just by thinking about food. But fair or not, companies know that obese employees are greater safety risks and much harder on the, ahem, bottom line.
One extensive study pegged the numbers at twice the comp claims, seven times the medical costs from those claims and 13 times as many days lost from work injuries and illnesses.
In other words, the higher the BMI, the lower the ROI.
And here’s where the fairness question gets reversed. Is it fair to make svelte health-conscious employees pay the same insurance premiums as their Devil (Dog)-may-care co-workers?
The great healthcare debate is now framing the question within a larger context: A new study from the Centers for Disease Control says the health cost of obesity in the U.S. is nearly $150 billion a year and rising. One idea: A tax on empty calories. Make people pay extra for “foods” that are virtually nutrition-free (and maybe even give ‘em a subsidy on the healthy stuff). It’s worked with cigarettes, say proponents: The combination of education and outrageous taxation has dramatically reduced tobacco use.
What do you think? Should employees who are greater safety risks because they consistently make unhealthy food choices have to pay more, either through higher premiums or higher taxes (or both)? Let us know in the Comment Box below.
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August 3rd, 2009 at 10:51 am
A FAT TAX? YOU’D MAKE A LOT MORE MONEY ON A STUPID TAX!!! THEN ALL OF THE PEOPLE IN WASHINGTON (PRESIDENT INCLUDED) WOULD HAVE TO PAY DOUBLE THE TAXES!!!!
August 3rd, 2009 at 10:52 am
Hate to be the one to tell you this. But, as we get older our metabalism slows and our muscle mass goes down. There are a lot of us that eat healthy and still put on weight. Maybe we should add this to the Obama health plan as another way to target seniors (by the way we are the ones who have paid the majority into the medicare/social security system and into the health care industry as a whole.)Obeseity is just as much a result of the chemicals added to our foods, nutrients being micro waved out, and pre packaged frozen foods losing nutrients & vitamins as it is bad habits.
August 3rd, 2009 at 10:54 am
STUPID PEOPLE GET HURT ALOT MORE THAN FAT PEOPLE!
August 3rd, 2009 at 11:30 am
How about just taxing those that practice unhealthy things in the first place and using those taxes to pay for healthcare programs that those individuals may be using?
August 3rd, 2009 at 11:43 am
To Allen Chance: There’s no need to shout (TYPING IN ALL CAPS).
August 3rd, 2009 at 12:56 pm
I personally think we are taxed enough. We are taxed on our income, our houses, sales tax, gas tax, inheritance tax and so on. All so the government can turn around and send billions of our hard earned dollars to every country that sticks their hand out. Now they want to tax food we are already taxed on? They don’t care if people are fat or get hurt more because they are, this is just another way to make money.
August 3rd, 2009 at 1:03 pm
Yes, tax all products high in fat and sugar with no nutritional value. I am 50 years old and eat a healthy diet. I am in fantastic shape and not only can I work harder and safer than obese people at my age and younger ,I will live a longer more fulfilling life. If people want cookies, cupcakes, etc. they should do their own baking. Home made desserts are much better for you than store bought.
August 3rd, 2009 at 2:24 pm
Not all obese people are unhealthy just as not all slim people are healthy. Insurance only works if there is a cross section of the population with distributed risk. Since 2/3 of the population in the USA is now overweight, I would suggest that we would benefit more by rewarding healthy behavior rather than over penalizing unhealthy behavior. As far as the bad food tax is concerned, I am in favor of taxing all processed food but I doubt that the high profit food companies would allow that without a fight.
August 3rd, 2009 at 3:25 pm
This BS isn’t about safety. It’s about the special interest insurance companies controling people so they can pay less out. Doesn’t matter they gross billions, they want to keep every penny.
August 3rd, 2009 at 7:14 pm
Oh, give me a break, this is the most ridiculous thing I have heard in a long time. I agree with the Stupid tax! Also, thin people are unhealthy too. It’s all about greed when you get right down to it.
August 3rd, 2009 at 9:08 pm
I agree with Bob K. Has anyone looked into how much money those Insurance CEO’s are making? Where exactly is all the Insurance premium money going to? I would guess there is a lot of waste (and greed) within the Insurance companies. Are we going to let them get away with the same things the fat cats on Wall Street and Bankers did? In regards to junk food - why is it cheaper to eat Value Menu food than the healthier salads and chicken? Some people eat what they can afford, not always because they prefer it. If you haven’t had to live on the low end of the pay scale in a while you may be out touch.
August 4th, 2009 at 7:28 am
Bob K is correct this has nothing to do with safety but it is interesting to see how taxation is invading all aspects of our lives. Enough is enough already, “uncle”, it never ceases to amaze me on the number of people that actually want higher taxes. This country of ours came into existance because of high taxation, now we have allowed ourselves to be taxed at an even higher rate. If we do not stand up to this steamroller of a government and just say no we will soon be devoured and yes we are that close if not beyond already.
August 5th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
I have to say…I have never heard of a more ignorant tax. I have been in safety for a while, and I have found that the more slender the worker, the more prone to injury. I find that slender people tend to go “ninety-to-nothing”(aka really fast) in everything that they do. Unfortunately, they don’t tend to slow down and see the hazards that are present. All of the safety professionals out there…if you really think about who is coming up repeatedly in your accident reports, you’ll see that thin personnel definately top the list…or maybe it is just a unique experience of mine???
February 9th, 2010 at 9:29 am
Those low-cost highly processed foods only LOOK cheap-because the petroleum used to grow and process the corn and soy products (and I include the corn-fed meats in this) is highly subsidized. If americans had to directly pay what foods actually cost to grow, proccess, and transport, we’d all suffer a high rate of sticker shock. In the meantime, taxes we pay in in other ways subsize foods that are making the country’s population as a whole, much less healthy. Cut the subsidies to factory farming-spend some of those tax $$$ to support SMALL farmers and local food sources. I shop at local farm stands first, a local country store second, and a “seconds” grocery, third. In my household, we, in general, eat lower on the food chain, and locally, as much as we can.
So, no, don’t tax the person buying them. Tax the companies that spend billions of our tax $$$ to put them on the grocery store shelves first. Make producing them less attractive, and give some support to those producing REAL foods.
March 16th, 2010 at 10:52 am
From the looks of all these comments, all I can properly say is reality hurts and excuses don’t work! When are people going to realize that life is not an effortless and indulgent joy ride???
August 18th, 2010 at 11:25 am
I totally agree with the stupid tax. Most of the people who get hurt are doing something stupid just watch America’s Funniest Home Videos. They do this on their free time and then we wonder why they get hurt at work, come on. When is this country going to quit their prejudices against whole groups of people? I thought we had come further than that but sadly no. The only three WC instances we have had in our company ever have all be underweight young guys that blows this theory out of the water, again!!!
November 23rd, 2010 at 12:18 pm
PLEASE MUST WE ADD MORE TAXES ON ALL FRONTS . WE SHOULD NEVER TRY TO CAUSE A REACTION TO SOMETHING BY TAXING IT. THIS IS JUST WRONG AND YOU SHOULD WAKE UP TO THAT