Charging Unhealthy People More for Health Insurance is Unacceptable Petition

To:  U.S. Government

Attaining health care in America is a major problem that many people face today. Nearly 47 million Americans (16 percent of the population) were without health insurance in 2005. Most Americans who had health insurance acquired it through their employers, but employment is no longer a guarantee of health insurance coverage. Health insurance coverage has become less stable because of the change in American economy from manufacturing-based to service. Due to the rising costs of health insurance premiums, numerous small employers cannot afford to offer health care benefits to their employees. Small companies that do offer health insurance usually ask their employees to contribute larger amounts of money towards their coverage. An increasing amount of Americans have chosen not to take advantage of their job based health insurance because they cannot afford it. Americans are having difficulties in affording health insurance today so charging individuals who are unhealthy is outrageous and should be stopped.


The impacts of going uninsured are clear and severe. Many uninsured individuals postpone needed medical care which results in increased mortality and billions of dollars lost in productivity and increased expenses to the health care system. There also exists a significant sense of vulnerability to the potential loss of health insurance which is shared by tens of millions of other Americans who have managed to retain coverage.


If there are demands that smokers, drinkers, and obese people pay more for health insurances then society is punishing them for being sick and ignoring the fact that these are difficult problems to overcome. Forcing a financial penalty will not bring an end to an alcoholic’s desire for liquor, though it may well make him angry enough to drink more. Those who believe that raising premiums can change a behavior like this assume that with a little will power, anyone can break an addiction. What those people do not understand is that it is not as easy as it sounds and experts who work with patients suffering with these problems know the truth.


Having people that live unhealthy life styles pay more for health insurance is very controversial. It also makes it harder then it already is for people to pay for insurance, and by raising premiums, it only makes if more likely that people that need to see a doctor will not be able to. Health insurance is designed to let the “lucky” provide a safety net for the “unlucky.” People who buy fire insurance hope to never use it yet they still buy it just in case. There are people that are fortunate with living healthy lifestyles because they never started smoking or didn’t like the smell or taste. They did not have to deal with the craving of nicotine and the agony of trying to quit. Others do not have to deal with eating problems because of genetics and can eat whatever they want and not gain a pound. Finally, consider the people that cannot have one drink without having several others, while others can enjoy an alcoholic beverage during a meal and not crave more. Some people are dealing with problems that are harder to deal with than others and no one is this world is perfect, whether they smoke, drink, drive fast, or bungee jump, we all take unnecessary risk and we want our health insurance there when we need it.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

The Charging Unhealthy People More for Health Insurance is Unacceptable Petition Petition to U.S. Government was created by and written by Jonathan Janton (nomolas8@cox.net).  This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no endorsement of this petition, express or implied, by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. For technical support please use our simple Petition Help form.