should smokers and drinkers pay more for health care?

Originally Posted by PattyNBK

Should drinkers pay more? No. Absolutely not. Alcohol has just as many positive effects as negative effects, and most (if not all) of those negative effects only happen if you drink too much. Oh, and "too much" varies from person to person. I really get sick of hearing some righteous people claiming drinking is bad for you; most medical studies say otherwise. After all, the worst things that can happen are organ failure (which generally only happens when you drink too much) and vehicular problems (causing by drinking and driving). So how this should go down is as follows . . . If someone ends up in the hospital due to alcohol-related issues, the premium should jump dramatically, as this is a sure sign that someone is getting dumb and drinking too much. As for those who drink and drive, I think the legal penalties for doing so should be bumped up a lot, like 10-20 years mandatory for the first offense; these people are dangerous.

Should smokers pay more? Yes. They are doing something that is dangerous by its very nature and has very little (if any) positive value (and those are actually just side effects, not actual uses). They endanger themselves and endanger others (second-hand smoke is sometimes worse than first-hand smoke, depending on if the smoker smokes with filters or not), and are far more likely to get numerous diseases than the average person. There is no doubt that lung cancer and smoking are linked; smoking is the top cause of lung cancer! Sure, it's not guaranteed, but then the same could be said for having sex with someone who has AIDS in that it's a gamble; you might get lucky, but chances are greater that you're gonna get something nasty. Bottom line, people shouldn't have to pay for others' stupidity. Oh, and if people lie about smoking and get caught, their insurance should be rendered null and void.

i like how smoking is OK and alcohol isn't just because one is deemed to be more socially acceptable than the other. sorry buddy, but one could also argue that smoking in very small quantities isn't fatal, and that its effects vary from person to person as well. you were also spouting complete crap when you said that medical studies say drinking is good for you. there isn't a single medical study on this earth that will conclude alcohol is ultimately good for you -- they all agree that its negatives far outweigh its positives. assuming that there are some small positive effects such as on the heart, you could achieve the same positive effects by doing other things such as a healthy lifestyle and eating habits. alcohol's positives pale in comparison to its negative effects, which completely nullify any good effects it (may) have. stop believing only what you want to believe because drinking is something you like to do and take a look at the entire picture.

Jam it back in, in the dark.