Scitech101
New member
One of the things that is driving up the cost of healthcare is simply that we are unhealthy. We eat too much junk food, we don't exercise, we drive wherever we go, etc.
Now sadly, while you can install universal healthcare and perhaps guide the free market, it is hard to combat unhealthy lifestyles without massive, politically dangerous regulation. Even then, you never know when you will accidentally cause the Free Market to detonate.
But how are we going to encourage healthier lifestyles? Modifying food stamps to only pay for healthy foods is one idea, but then you would have to use incentives to convince convience stores. That is always a hassle, and then you would have to increase the amount of money on each foodstamp (as organic and healthy costs more)
You couldn't just cut insurance for the unhealthy. We tried that, but that just flooded the emergency room with people who had pre-existing conditions.
Perhaps clamping down on Trans-Fat IS a good idea....
The issue is that regardless of whether it is a personal responsability, people won't do it. People won't stop eating big macs, as it actually triggers a chemical response in the brain that overrides the "stop eating" function.
And we can't bar them from the emergency room. Then they die, the politicians take flak and get voted out, we have to bury the bodies, etc.
It has to be the societies responsability because the society is affected by the individual's choices. and individual people tend to be stupid!
So, what can the society do as a whole.
LETTING FAT PEOPLE DIE ON THE STREET IS A GOOD WAY TO GET YOURSELF VOTED OUT OF OFFICE, so that isn't an option either.
Now sadly, while you can install universal healthcare and perhaps guide the free market, it is hard to combat unhealthy lifestyles without massive, politically dangerous regulation. Even then, you never know when you will accidentally cause the Free Market to detonate.
But how are we going to encourage healthier lifestyles? Modifying food stamps to only pay for healthy foods is one idea, but then you would have to use incentives to convince convience stores. That is always a hassle, and then you would have to increase the amount of money on each foodstamp (as organic and healthy costs more)
You couldn't just cut insurance for the unhealthy. We tried that, but that just flooded the emergency room with people who had pre-existing conditions.
Perhaps clamping down on Trans-Fat IS a good idea....
The issue is that regardless of whether it is a personal responsability, people won't do it. People won't stop eating big macs, as it actually triggers a chemical response in the brain that overrides the "stop eating" function.
And we can't bar them from the emergency room. Then they die, the politicians take flak and get voted out, we have to bury the bodies, etc.
It has to be the societies responsability because the society is affected by the individual's choices. and individual people tend to be stupid!
So, what can the society do as a whole.
LETTING FAT PEOPLE DIE ON THE STREET IS A GOOD WAY TO GET YOURSELF VOTED OUT OF OFFICE, so that isn't an option either.