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On average, obese people are a smaller burden on the health care system because they die quickly (from a heart attack or something similar) rather than the draw

by qntty 9y ago

On average, obese people are a smaller burden on the health care system because they die quickly (from a heart attack or something similar) rather than the drawn out deaths that people of average weight have. End-of-life care is by far the most expensive (health care wise) phase of a person's life.

adventured 9y ago
You're neglecting to consider scale. That is, the healthcare costs that arise when you have 30% or 40% adult obesity in a nation. People over the age of 65 are less than 15% of the population in the US as a reference. Further, a lot of those obese people still live into their late 60s, 70s, 80s. We've gotten better and better - at a high cost - at keeping them alive despite the consequences of the obesity.
- qntty 9y ago
  I'm merely stating the conclusions that others have reached, so I certainly haven't considered these points. If you are an expert in the subject then by all means engage with the people who do this sort of research. See my other comment for a source if you're interested.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
FooHentai 9y ago
Not true. First off, premature death from obesity-related illnesses, before retirement age, means that individual contributed less than a full working life into the system i.e. if you drop out of the workforce at 40 due to poor health, there's ~25 years of productivity and tax income that will not be realized. Second, if you have the image of obesity related deaths being a sudden heart attack and dropping dead that same day, you'd be wrong. Diabetes, cancer, heart disease (within the spectrum of which a heart attack is only one likely consequence and sits alongside angina, strokes etc), these are long drawn-out declines that many obese people will suffer. Third, accommodating obese patients requires significant specialist equipment, all of which places a burden on the system which would not be present if obese persons were not present. Specialized ambulances, MRI machines, gurneys, hoists, widened doorways etc. “Obese men rack up an additional $1,152 a year in medical spending, especially for hospitalizations and prescription drugs, Cawley and Chad Meyerhoefer of Lehigh University reported in January in the Journal of Health Economics. Obese women account for an extra $3,613 a year. Using data from 9,852 men (average BMI: 28) and 13,837 women (average BMI: 27) ages 20 to 64, among whom 28 percent were obese, the researchers found even higher costs among the uninsured: annual medical spending for an obese person was $3,271 compared with $512 for the non-obese.” https://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/04/30/obesity-now-costs-americans-more-in-healthcare-costs-than-smoking/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/04/30/obesity-no...
- qntty 9y ago
  These are all interesting points for researchers to consider. I'm not a researcher so all I can do is read their conclusions and they say that lifetime costs for obese patients are still lower despite all these factors. You can read more here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080204212858.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080204212858.h...

by qntty 9y ago

adventured 9y ago

You're neglecting to consider scale. That is, the healthcare costs that arise when you have 30% or 40% adult obesity in a nation. People over the age of 65 are less than 15% of the population in the US as a reference. Further, a lot of those obese people still live into their late 60s, 70s, 80s. We've gotten better and better - at a high cost - at keeping them alive despite the consequences of the obesity.

qntty 9y ago
I'm merely stating the conclusions that others have reached, so I certainly haven't considered these points. If you are an expert in the subject then by all means engage with the people who do this sort of research. See my other comment for a source if you're interested.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

FooHentai 9y ago

Not true. First off, premature death from obesity-related illnesses, before retirement age, means that individual contributed less than a full working life into the system i.e. if you drop out of the workforce at 40 due to poor health, there's ~25 years of productivity and tax income that will not be realized. Second, if you have the image of obesity related deaths being a sudden heart attack and dropping dead that same day, you'd be wrong. Diabetes, cancer, heart disease (within the spectrum of which a heart attack is only one likely consequence and sits alongside angina, strokes etc), these are long drawn-out declines that many obese people will suffer. Third, accommodating obese patients requires significant specialist equipment, all of which places a burden on the system which would not be present if obese persons were not present. Specialized ambulances, MRI machines, gurneys, hoists, widened doorways etc. “Obese men rack up an additional $1,152 a year in medical spending, especially for hospitalizations and prescription drugs, Cawley and Chad Meyerhoefer of Lehigh University reported in January in the Journal of Health Economics. Obese women account for an extra $3,613 a year. Using data from 9,852 men (average BMI: 28) and 13,837 women (average BMI: 27) ages 20 to 64, among whom 28 percent were obese, the researchers found even higher costs among the uninsured: annual medical spending for an obese person was $3,271 compared with $512 for the non-obese.” https://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/04/30/obesity-now-costs-americans-more-in-healthcare-costs-than-smoking/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/04/30/obesity-no...

qntty 9y ago
These are all interesting points for researchers to consider. I'm not a researcher so all I can do is read their conclusions and they say that lifetime costs for obese patients are still lower despite all these factors. You can read more here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080204212858.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080204212858.h...