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Yes

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Certainly! Smokers should be denied all insurance protection for any medical condition, such as coronary arterial bypass surgery, that is aggravated by their addiction. There is no reason why other members of society should pay for their habit anymore than we should pay for heroin or crack habituates.

It is easy to quit smoking if you have the correct frame of mind. Perhaps the fact that they would have to pay full rates, not even negotiated rates, for any affliction they need corrected, might focus their minds on quitting the nasty dirty habit.

Obesity is defined as a belt size of 40 inches and above or a mass-and-height index of over 30. That is a 5'8" man who is 200 lb. That same 5'8" man is still overweight at 168 lb. Obesity and gross overweight leads to all manner of diseases including diabetes.

Perhaps we should add a label to belts that are 40" or more with the note that "wearing this belt is hazardous to your health."

Obesity is at an all time high in the United States because most large men don't realize that they have a medical problem. It's worth remembering that a Large' size in the U.S. is, in Europe, Extra-Large.'

Among blacks it appears that women have the main problem so much so that popular black entertainers tied recently to push the idea and "black and fat" was beautiful. It is not and fortunately the idea pushed by an overweight black singer died quickly.

Like a smoker, an obese person is the master of his or her own destiny. "Quit eating or do more exercise." It is simple as that. Refusal of insurance protection would simply focus their mind on an easily corrected medical condition.

What isn't simple is that a large majority of our legislators are obese or grossly overweight and they would never stand for this sort of legislation. They would act to protect their own.

That is the problem with most simple and meaningful legislation, which changes how Congress works. You need the present Congress to pass the new legislation. That's why the present question: "Should smokers and the obese be denied coronary artery bypass surgery?" is merely rhetorical.

Learn more about this author, John Graham.
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