Obesity raises health-care costs
Last Updated Aug 2007
You don't have to be a rocket scientist to know that health-care costs are rising
rapidly in America. One of two things must be happening: Either more people are
getting sick, or it costs a lot more to treat a person. Unfortunately, according
to an article in the June 27 online version of Health Affairs, it may be that a lot
more people are a lot sicker. Most of the increase is coming from the treatment
of diabetes and hypertension, two conditions strongly associated with obesity. In
fact, the cost for treating an obese person compared to a normal-weight person has
increased almost five times since 1987. This indicates that obese patients are
taking a far greater share of our health-care expenditures because they have a
greater variety of chronic diseases. Since there is no abatement of the obesity
epidemic, the amount of insurance payments to the obese population will continue to
escalate. Rather than increasing co-pays for doctor visits and drug payments
(which have no impact on reducing obesity), it may make better economic sense to
feed obese patients Zone meals until they are no longer a drain on medical
resources.