Proposed West Virginia ‘Fat Tax’ Hit

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin’s proposal that the state Public Employees Insurance Agency consider charging higher premiums for overweight workers has drawn criticism.

Gordon Simmons, an organizer for state Public Employees Union UE 170 says the proposal amounts to a “fat tax” that will drive employee morale down.

Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper has sent a letter to PEIA Director Ted Cheatham urging him to reject the proposal.

Carper says the state should emulate Kanawha County by offering incentives to workers who get regular checkups and blood tests.

Last week, Cheatham said higher premiums might encourage workers to lose weight. PEIA already charges smokers higher premiums than nonsmokers.

Last week, North Carolina’s public employee health insurance program announced that it will start charging higher premiums for overweight policyholders, beginning in July 2011.

Latest Comments

• November 8, 2009 at 9:44 am

  Brokette says:

  First of all, you have to decide what purpose you're trying to accomplish. If it's simply to make everybody prettier to look at perhaps free cosmetic surgery would be the tic... read more
• November 8, 2009 at 1:35 am

  Kaylene says:

  I don't think the fat tax will work... last I heard West Virginia and Arkansas did implement the tax, and they still have the fifth and sixth highest obesity rates in the nati... read more
• October 28, 2009 at 3:56 am

  WillGoBroke says:

  OMG! I do all of these and then some. Man - taxing these activities would surely put me in the soup kitchen line!