Health insurance overweight should pay more?

CDU politician calls: Overweight should pay more for health insurance.

(22.07.2010)The CDU member of parliament Marco Wanderwitz demands: Overweight people should pay higher health insurance contributions. A summer hole theme of a member of the Bundestag or a consensual position within the CDU faction? The politician sees his opinion confirmed by a new study on the health system.

Suitably placed in the Bildzeitung the CDU delegate Wanderwitz said this Thursday: "It must be questioned whether the immense costs, for example, caused by excessive consumption of food, permanently from the system of solidarity can be paid". According to the opinion of Wanderwitz, obese people should pay more into the health system. So "consciously unhealthy people" should also have a "own responsibility in financial terms".

Marco Wanderwitz sees his position confirmed by the "Jacobs University" in Bremen. Thus, a majority in Germany for higher health insurance contributions, if people lead an unhealthy lifestyle. The study author Adele Diederich said that people would be much clearer and more resilient than politicians would always assume, "the majority of the insured advocates higher co-payments for unhealthy behavior, Diedrich.

Such positions are unlikely to succeed, as they violate the principle of equality of the Basic Law. Therefore, due to their physical condition, people should not be discriminated against by higher contributions. The topic is rather to be regarded as a "summer hole theme". (Sb)

Also read:
Health insurance: Hard cuts expected
Contribution increases of the private health insurance companies
More and more insured refuse additional contributions

Picture: Sigrid Rossmann