Obamacare – At Least One Part Is Working Well // Smoker Surcharge Effective, Saves Money,

WASHINGTON - Dec. 30, 2013 - PRLog -- WASHINGTON, D.C. (Dec. 30, 2013):   Despite all the many concerns voiced about Obamacare, one part clearly seems to be working, is saving money for all plan users and especially for the great majority who do not smoke, and has generated only negligible criticism, says public interest law professor John Banzhaf.

         "The 50% surcharge on smokers seems to be one of the few parts of the new Affordable Care Act [ACA] which clearly seems to be successful.  As reported in the Wall Street Journal, the British Medical Journal, and elsewhere, imposing a smoker surcharge can slash smoking rates among employees by 50%."

         Banzhaf notes that if even only 10% of current smokers quit to avoid the new surcharge, the savings would be enormous, because smoking costs the American economy about $300 billion a year, and each smoking employee can cost his employer over $12,000 more per year in totally avoidable costs.

        Also, the surcharge paid by every smoker who doesn't quit reduces the cost of insurance for the great majority who are nonsmokers, and for any portions which may have to be paid by taxpayers.

        In something of a surprise to some, the objections to the smoker surcharge have been muted.

        With the media almost daily reporting outrage about cancelled plans, much higher premium rates often coupled with higher deductibles, people losing access to long-time personal physicians and better hospitals, difficulty and uncertainties about signing up and paying for coverage, etc., there has been very little outcry about smokers being forced to begin accepting some personal responsibility for their own lifestyle choices, remarks Banzhaf, who lobbied for the smoker surcharge.

        This is consistent with other surveys showing that the public increasingly supports smokers paying more, as do the number of tax increases on cigarettes during 2013 in states like Hawaii, New Mexico, New York, South Carolina, Utah, and Washington despite a general reluctance to raise taxes.

        Unlike the major thrust of Obamacare, which is to simply shift the costs of medical care from one group to another, the smoker surcharge is already proving that the overall costs of health care can be reduced - rather than just shifted - by preventing expensive conditions like heart attacks, strokes, lung and other cancers, etc. caused by smoking from developing in the first place.

        Requiring smokers to accept some of the expensive consequences of their choices is providing them - in many cases for the first time in their lives - with an immediate, tangible, and very persuasive reason to quit, and many apparently are giving up smoking to avoid the surcharge, suggests Banzhaf.

        Prof. Banzhaf notes that the effect will be much greater during 2015, when older smokers are scheduled to begin paying an even higher surcharge.  During 2014, insurance companies were not able to  impose the full 50% surcharge on older smokers because of some computer glitches.

JOHN F. BANZHAF III, B.S.E.E., J.D., Sc.D.
Professor of Public Interest Law
George Washington University Law School,
FAMRI Dr. William Cahan Distinguished Professor,
Fellow, World Technology Network,
Founder, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH)
2000 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20052, USA
(202) 994-7229 // (703) 527-8418
http://banzhaf.net/ @profbanzhaf