Employees who smoke, are overweight, and that wish to keep their personal information private will be at a financial disadvantage as companies start to impose new regulations under ObamaCare, Reuters reported.
In an attempt to keep healthcare costs down, nearly 40 percent of companies in 2014 will enforce surcharges for employees who don't meet certain health criteria, according to a survey released in September. On the flip side, those deemed healthy by company standards could save up to $1,620 annually. The outcomes of Obama's polices are supposed to be win-win; companies and employees save money while motivating all workers to lead more healthy lives.
LuAnn Heinen, vice president for the National Business Group on Health, said individuals with unhealthy habits like smoking disproportionately affect a company's health care costs. Indeed, a recent Ohio State University survey found companies spend $6,000 more per year on smokers.
"We found that while less than 10 percent of workers at large employers smoke, their impact to healthcare costs is disproportionately huge," Heinen said. "Helping them quit - however you do that - has the most obvious near-term payoff in terms of savings and productivity gains."
Because of their impacts, smokers are the most-heavily penalized group, according to Reuters. For example, Proctor and Gamble charges its nicotine users $25 more per month until they participate in a company-sponsored quitting program; state employees in Indiana and Washington pay anywhere from $600 to $1,800 more per year because of their smoking habit.
Critics believe the policies are discriminatory, particularly against the poor -- a group of people ObamaCare as a whole is supposed to support. Twenty nine percent of individuals below the poverty line smoke compared to 18 percent above the poverty line, according to Reuters. Low income individuals are also more like to be overweight.
"Some programs can verge on discrimination," said the study's lead author, Ted Kyle, referring to programs that make it increasingly difficult for obese individuals to qualify for health care.
Only 19 percent of companies adopted health-monitoring policies when the same survey was given in 2011. The percentage is expected to increase from 40 percent next year to two-thirds by 2015, according to Reuters.
Companies discover the health of their employees through health screenings and questionnaires, which, if refused, typically forces individuals to pay a higher premium. Some companies require employees to participate in a wellness program in order to receive full benefits.
Pennsylvania State University had a policy that charged employees an extra $100 for not filling out a health questionnaire until a worker protest forced the college to abandon it, Reuters reported.
"These were just things no employer has the right to ask," said Brian Curran, a professor at Penn State who started a petition to protest the questionnaire.
Research shows that savings may not be as significant as the logic of the new regulations dictate. A report by the RAND Corporation revealed relatively few savings following company wellness programs, Reuters reported.
