America: Home of The Fat, Land of the Feed
The United States is disgracefully fat. No, disregard that last statement please. That’s not at all true. Let rephrase, The United States is disgracefully obese (for the difference see the following article) and getting worse. One third of this country is considered obese. We lead the entire world in being fat. Most, of sound mind anyway, would agree that steps need to be taken to reduce the health-care costs in this country. The debate has been going on for fifty years and President Obama made health-care his top priority in 2010. Michele Obama has started the ‘Let’s Move’ initiative to battle childhood obesity. That is all well and good but it does not change the fact that the United States is getting larger and larger every year. But when it comes to lowering health care costs Americans want to “Have their cake and eat it too”, literally.
The President needs to call a press conference to tell the American people, “Losing weight will lead to a better lifestyle!” Umm wait no, that won’t work. The President needs to tell the American people, “Reducing their size sets a good example for their children!” Hmm no that won’t do anything either. Wait! I got it. The President needs to look the American people in the eye on prime time television and declare, “My fellow citizens. The number one thing we can do to reduce healthcare costs for all Americans is to improve the health of all Americans.”
“Wait. Did he seriously just interrupt me during the game to give me a lecture on eating better. Who does this guy think he is,” says Mr. Braldey as he tops off his quart size bowl of ice cream with some nuts and fudge. Rumblings of discontent could be heard in 30% of the households in the United States as people declare that he has no right to tell “Us how to eat!” “Socialism, Socialism!”
I believe there are two solutions that can have a tremendous impact on the health-care costs in this country. One is something everyone is very familiar with, cash, and the other is a National Public Fitness System. If there is one thing that Americans respond to more than calories it’s money. If people are too lazy to lose weight because of a silly reason such as their health than perhaps they’ll respond to incentives. The idea is simple really; health-care rates for an individual are based on their concern for their own health and their productivity in they gym. Think of it as the Allstate Good Driver Discount for your fat ass. Why should someone who leads a healthy lifestyle pay the same rates for health insurance as someone tooling around on an electric scooter, sailing the seas bouncing from buffet table to buffet table? The fact is they shouldn’t. The same way a responsible driver shouldn’t pay as much for car insurance as a teenager who just received their license.
I’m not going to go in details on specific incentives, but here are some suggestions:
- Pass a physical with flying colors, cheaper rate
- Non-smoker, cheaper rate
- Gym member, cheaper rate
- Proper weight in proportion to your height and age, cheaper rate
I think you get the idea.
“But gym memberships are expensive,” you say. Perhaps it would help if the federal government were to provide tax breaks for all those who paid gym memberships. Republicans are always concerned with reducing taxes for the rich, so perhaps they wouldn’t object to tax brakes for the fat. I would go so far as to say that the government could pay you for reaching certain health goals over a period of time. Imagine receiving a check in the mail just for hitting the treadmill! Giving a few bucks now to someone who maintains their health would be far cheaper than the bypass surgery they’re going to need a year from now.
I would even suggest a National Pubic Fitness Club System. Think of it as a Public Library system for the unhealthy. This would no doubt raise concerns for gym owners and cause quite a stir. But to those owners I would say such a system would be beneficial to business. Raising awareness to America’s ridiculous weight problem could only bring in more customers. Besides, have our public libraries had a negative impact on the bottom-line of Barnes & Noble.
The point is we are a fat, gluttonous country and getting bigger by the year. Population growth is a concern, but when the population is twice the size they should be than we have a much bigger problem. Literally. We’re so quick to be concerned with terrorism and our safety, and with good reason, yet there’s an al-Qaida in one-third of the American peoples heart just waiting to attack. What are we doing about that disaster waiting to happen?
They say a rising tide lifts all boats. Well a boat will also lift itself if everyone sitting in it is not 75lbs overweight.
Additional Note: There is research being done in the field of ”feeling full”. I felt that was outside the scope of this article but for more information please visit The Wall Street Journal Article, “Hungry? Your Stomach Really Does Have a Mind of Its Own.”
