Don't Call It A Fat Tax
Update 12/30: I corrected some inaccuracies in the original version.
Updated12/30, part 2: Over at Slog, Erica Barnett politely takes issue with this post and has some smart ideas to improve the plan. My reply is below the jump.
Seeing as how this year's holiday overeating falls on the eve of a national health care debate, I give you an interesting idea from the land of all things deep-fried:
...the Alabama State Employees' Insurance Board approved a plan that will charge workers an additional $25 to cover their insurance premiums, if they don't take advantage of free health screenings available to all state employees. The program, to begin in January, will require state workers to receive medical screenings for body mass index and health problems such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity.
Alabam's program is unfairly being called a "fat tax" but that's an inaccurate description. In fact, the $25 fee is optional -- at least at first.
