Government Healthcare: Deny coverage to unhealthy people

[MaddLlama]

I found this from another board:
| News | This is London

Failing to follow a healthy lifestyle could lead to free NHS treatment being denied under the Tory plans.
Patients would be handed "NHS Health Miles Cards" allowing them to earn reward points for losing weight, giving up smoking, receiving immunisations or attending regular health screenings.
Like a supermarket loyalty card, the points could be redeemed as discounts on gym membership and fresh fruit and vegetables, or even give priority for other public services - such as jumping the queue for council housing.
But heavy smokers, the obese and binge drinkers who were a drain on the NHS could be denied some routine treatments such as hip replacements until they cleaned up their act.

Frankly I find this to be absolutely abhorrent, and it clearly illustrates that Government Healthcare programs aren't the "pie-in-the-sky" dream everyone says they are.
Yes, I think that it's a good idea to encourage people to be healthier, but there are far better ways of doing so than denying people healthcare. It's also incredibly hypocritical:
Smoking is bad because it kills. Denying healthcare is good because it kills, and teaches people a lesson.

 

[Jaymes]

While I think it's a nice idea to reward people for being healthier (it'd also be nice to reward them for being more environmentally friendly), it's wrong to deny people treatment like that.

 

[MaddLlama]

While I think it's a nice idea to reward people for being healthier (it'd also be nice to reward them for being more environmentally friendly), it's wrong to deny people treatment like that.

I agree. Though, the article also brought up that the plan is also unfair to healthy people: it offers more rewards to people who change from an unhealthy to a healthy lifestyle, but doesn't really reward people who are already living a healthy lifestyle.