The Cleveland Clinic, in Ohio, is going to charge workers who are considered to be unhealthy a 21% higher health insurance premium than it will charge to employees who are healthy. There is a lot of debate over whether this type of plan achieves the goal of making workers become healthier. Charging some workers more for insurance, based upon that person’s health, is part of a growing trend. The Cleveland Clinic is about to do something that many other employers have done. They want their workers to become healthier. More and more employers have become very interested in how healthy, … Continue reading →

There are a lot of employers, all across the United States, that are doing something new with their employer sponsored health insurance plans. Non-smokers are offered lower premiums than what is offered to smokers. Is this fair? A poll shows what the majority of Americans think about this issue. Health insurance is expensive. Everyone who has ever tried to find an individual health insurance plan discovers this truth very quickly. Every employee who has had their employer take more out of their paycheck, in order to pay for health insurance premiums, is aware of this as well. Employers want to … Continue reading →

Companies that offer employer sponsored health insurance are always looking for ways to lower the amount of money that they have to spend on it. There is a new trend for employers to charge higher premiums to workers who smoke, or who are obese. This decision is controversial. In the past few years, employers have been doing a variety of things to attempt to encourage their workers to become healthier. This isn’t because the corporation has developed a mother-like interest in their employees, or has a true interest in making the lives of their workers better. The real motivation has … Continue reading →

Every year, people decide to quit smoking. This is a very popular New Year’s Resolution. Many health insurance companies have started covering the cost of smoking cessation programs, and offering a lower premium rate to non-smokers. These incentives don’t make it any easier to quit smoking. About 20% of adults are smokers. Seven out of ten smokers say that they want to quit. Untold numbers of smokers are currently struggling to keep their New Year’s Resolution, and finally achieve their goal of quitting smoking. I have heard it said that it is harder to quit using nicotine than it is … Continue reading →

A new Gallup poll shows that Americans who have health insurance coverage are more likely to have healthier habits, and are less likely to smoke. It is unclear if having health insurance influences people to make healthier choices, or if the less healthy are unable to afford health insurance. Gallup is an organization that has been studying human nature and human behavior for over 75 years. To do this, they have employed leading scientists in subjects like management, economics, psychology, and sociology. Gallup is a well respected organization, and the results it finds are considered to be important and newsworthy. … Continue reading →