State employees who don't make an effort to lose weight and get healthy will be charged an extra $25 for health benefits
Soon Alabama state employees will have to lose weight or pay more for their health insurance.
Obesity is a growing health and economic concern in the United States and the state o Alabama has the second highest rate of obesity in the country.
In 2010, the state will charge its 37,527 employees an extra $25 per month for health insurance. But employees who get a check-up at an on-site wellness centre will be able to opt out of the fee.
The check-up, done by a nurse, will include tests for diabetes and hypertension, and measure blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose levels and Body Mass Index (BMI), which is a way to calculate the percentage of body fat.
Employees with a BMI of 35 (a BMI of 30 is considered obese by most medical standards) won't have to pay the extra $25. Obese workers will have to see a doctor and show proof of their attempt to lose weight.
The state says the goal of the program is to encourage employees to act responsibly, lose weight and lower their health-care needs, but critics call it a "fat tax" and say it will stigmatize obese employees.
Employees with a BMI of 35 or higher cost the state 40 per cent more than those with a BMI under 35, said William Ashmore, executive director of the Alabama State Employee's Insurance Board and creator of the new program.
However, critics say the program will humiliate obese employees and is in fact a form of discrimination. Obesity is classified as a disease and employers wouldn't charge employees with other diseases, such as cancer, extra, said Judith Stern, an nutrition professor at the University of California in Davis, Calif.
The program itself is quite costly - the screenings and programs, which are an attempt to save the state in medical costs, will cost the state $1.6 million a year.
Alabama isn't they only jurisdiction to look at this kind of a program. In Japan, citizens are summoned to appear for measurements and if they're too fat, the government will fine their employer. The cut off for men is a waist circumference of more than 33.5 inches and for women it's 35.4 inches
Obesity is a growing health and economic concern in the United States and the state o Alabama has the second highest rate of obesity in the country.
In 2010, the state will charge its 37,527 employees an extra $25 per month for health insurance. But employees who get a check-up at an on-site wellness centre will be able to opt out of the fee.
The check-up, done by a nurse, will include tests for diabetes and hypertension, and measure blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose levels and Body Mass Index (BMI), which is a way to calculate the percentage of body fat.
Employees with a BMI of 35 (a BMI of 30 is considered obese by most medical standards) won't have to pay the extra $25. Obese workers will have to see a doctor and show proof of their attempt to lose weight.
The state says the goal of the program is to encourage employees to act responsibly, lose weight and lower their health-care needs, but critics call it a "fat tax" and say it will stigmatize obese employees.
Employees with a BMI of 35 or higher cost the state 40 per cent more than those with a BMI under 35, said William Ashmore, executive director of the Alabama State Employee's Insurance Board and creator of the new program.
However, critics say the program will humiliate obese employees and is in fact a form of discrimination. Obesity is classified as a disease and employers wouldn't charge employees with other diseases, such as cancer, extra, said Judith Stern, an nutrition professor at the University of California in Davis, Calif.
The program itself is quite costly - the screenings and programs, which are an attempt to save the state in medical costs, will cost the state $1.6 million a year.
Alabama isn't they only jurisdiction to look at this kind of a program. In Japan, citizens are summoned to appear for measurements and if they're too fat, the government will fine their employer. The cut off for men is a waist circumference of more than 33.5 inches and for women it's 35.4 inches
