In Alabama, insurance fees go up with the needle on the scale
Friday, August 22nd, 2008 | Link | Spread The Word!
The state of Alabama has announced to its more that 37,000 state employees that it will begin billing them for being overweight. Employees have a year to demonstrate that they are working on slimming down, exercising, eating more healthily. If they fail to do so, they will be charged a $25 monthly insurance surcharge. Alabama is third in the nation for obesity, and already charges state employees more for insurance if they smoke. The yearlong period they have to prove they are serious about their weight and health is measured by blood pressure and blood glucose levels. Test poorly now; you’ve got a year to straighten it out. Test the same or worse at the end of that year; you pay $25 a month. As medical research continues to uncover the cost of a chronically unhealthy public, employers adapt to cut their costs and shift some responsibility to the insured. Good insurance lead management software can help insurance companies stay on top of the shifting landscape that result from these advances in medical technology and their real world ramifications.