Alabama proposes "fat tax."

[memphis]

I'm kind of suprised that this is coming from a Southern state. Opinions?

[Franzl]

I'm kind of suprised that this is coming from a Southern state. Opinions?

I'm not. The south is where the most money is to be made by such a tax

[memphis]

Apologies for neglecting to provide the link:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,414861,00.html

[JSojourner]

Damn nanny staters.  ;-)

[dead0man]

This makes sense.  Smokers have to pay more for life insurance, fatties shouldn't be shocked when they have pay more for health insurance.


(and yes, I know, .05% of fat people can't help it.  The other 99.95% can though.)

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

OK, at first I thought this was a tax for general people and I thought, why is dead0man for this, but then I went over to read the article (I had been waiting for it to load while I read comments), and I gotta say, I kinda agree with him, but on the other hand, I kinda don't.

I'd be more comfortable with letting a private company do this than the government though.  But if it's costing the government too much money to keep insuring them, I guess they could say to the employees, "Look, you have 3 options: 1) Sign on to this plan; 2) Find your own insurrance; 3) Quit"

[Ban my account ffs!]

OK, at first I thought this was a tax for general people and I thought, why is dead0man for this, but then I went over to read the article (I had been waiting for it to load while I read comments), and I gotta say, I kinda agree with him, but on the other hand, I kinda don't.

I'd be more comfortable with letting a private company do this than the government though.  But if it's costing the government too much money to keep insuring them, I guess they could say to the employees, "Look, you have 3 options: 1) Sign on to this plan; 2) Find your own insurrance; 3) Quit"

It appears the private companies have already done this.  It is likely that if they had their own insurance, they'd pay a higher premium, but that they probably pay the same price under their benefits plan with the government... so now rather than the government just eating that cost, they're simply passing it on.

I understand it, but I don't agree with it.

[King]

This is just a tax on teh poor who can't afford personal trainers.

Do they tax by the pound or inches around the waste or body fat % or what?

[dead0man]

This is just a tax on teh poor who can't afford personal trainers.

Do they tax by the pound or inches around the waste or body fat % or what?

The article said BMI, which has it's faults.

I'd like to make it clear that I don't support this (nor am I against it), I just understand.  This is Alabama's issue.

edit=and it's not a "tax on the poor".  It's a tax on the fat if it's a tax on anything.  Being poor doesn't make you fat and yes I understand that's it's easier to be fat if you're poor because low cost food is horrible for you (at least the kind of low fat food poor Americans tend to buy).  But that still doesn't mean being poor makes you fat.  And these are employee's of the state we're talking about here anyway, they generally aren't going to be poor.