Anti-Smoking Programs: Should Insurers Foot the Bill?
Rhode Island Governor Don Carcieri wants to cut a state-sponsored anti-smoking program from his state's budget.
The catch?
He doesn't want to get rid of the program altogether; he just wants health insurance companies to pick up the tab.
The state's anti-smoking program, aimed mostly at reaching teens and convincing them not to smoke, has cut the percentage of young smokers in Rhode Island from 35 to 16 percent—a noteworthy accomplishment.
But now, Carcieri plans to reduce the state's spending on anti-smoking advertising by $225,000—and he hopes insurers will take up the cause, according to the story in the Insurance Journal.
"If you really believe this is the solution, long-term, for better, healthier people...then the insurers have to get behind this," Carcieri claims.
What do insurers think?
"For every mandate enacted by the legislature, there is an increased cost to employers and healthplan members," says Debora Spano, spokeswoman for United Healthcare.
What do you think? Should insurance companies step in and fund potentially life-saving efforts like this? Or will the expense related to such funding only bring higher healthcare costs?
Wouldn't we all like to know....
