Monday, September 13, 2004
"Fat tax" proposed in Germany
["'Tax the fat' says minister," Ananova, September 2004.]
Lest you think that warnings of future "fat taxes" are absurd, Germany's finance minister is calling for just such a measure to combat rising health care costs. There is no question that a healthier population will lead to cost-savings, but is helping us make food decisions a job we want to entrust to politicians? If insurance becomes a state function, it will be:
Hans Eichel said urgent measures were needed to close the 41 billion euro budgetary gap, and is now looking to increased insurance costs for overweight Germans as well as extreme sport fans.
Speaking to daily newspaper Die Welt, Eichel said: "The first question that we have to ask ourselves is if we really all need to burden the health insurers so much.
"Everyone is partly responsible for their health. This begins with what we eat and ends with whether we take part in risky sports or not."
The 62-year-old Finance Minister has the support of the country's doctors.
President of the German Chamber of Doctors, Dr. Guenther Jonitz, said: "Minister Eichel is on the right track when he talks about nutrition-based behaviour. But it would be difficult to control.
"We would literally need weight watchers to calculate how much health insurance people should pay depending on their weight."
Instead Dr. Jonitz suggested a 'Big-Mac tax' be introduced on foods that contain sugar, animal fats and salt as well as on alcohol and nicotine products.
"Those who don't eat many of these products will not notice the costs and those who do will," he said.
["'Tax the fat' says minister," Ananova, September 2004.]
Lest you think that warnings of future "fat taxes" are absurd, Germany's finance minister is calling for just such a measure to combat rising health care costs. There is no question that a healthier population will lead to cost-savings, but is helping us make food decisions a job we want to entrust to politicians? If insurance becomes a state function, it will be:
Hans Eichel said urgent measures were needed to close the 41 billion euro budgetary gap, and is now looking to increased insurance costs for overweight Germans as well as extreme sport fans.
Speaking to daily newspaper Die Welt, Eichel said: "The first question that we have to ask ourselves is if we really all need to burden the health insurers so much.
"Everyone is partly responsible for their health. This begins with what we eat and ends with whether we take part in risky sports or not."
The 62-year-old Finance Minister has the support of the country's doctors.
President of the German Chamber of Doctors, Dr. Guenther Jonitz, said: "Minister Eichel is on the right track when he talks about nutrition-based behaviour. But it would be difficult to control.
"We would literally need weight watchers to calculate how much health insurance people should pay depending on their weight."
Instead Dr. Jonitz suggested a 'Big-Mac tax' be introduced on foods that contain sugar, animal fats and salt as well as on alcohol and nicotine products.
"Those who don't eat many of these products will not notice the costs and those who do will," he said.
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