Quote:
Originally Posted by Derwood
if you prorate health insurance so that the healthiest pay the least and the unhealthiest the most, then the second someone gets, say, cancer, their rates shoot up and they're in the poor house. How is that a good system?
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It isn't a matter of "healthiest". It is a matter of lifestyle. If an otherwise perfectly healthy person gets cancer, rates stay the same. If a 2 pack a day person gets cancer, no shit! This is the same as car insurance: if a good driver gets rear-ended (no fault of theirs) their rates don't go up because they didn't engage in risky behavior. Does that better explain?
70% of all medical bills in America are associated with heart disease, cancer, and obesity related issues (joints, diabetes, circulation, etc.) Heart disease and cancer are in the 70-th percental for preventable and nearly all heart/cancer/obesity illnesses are preventable and can be dramatically reduced through the behavior of the individual. The point is that we should manage costs by making risky choices expensive - just like when you drive recklessly.