One of the biggest issues in the health care reform debate is funding. How are we going to pay for a new health care system? The video clip, "Should Unhealthy Foods Be Taxed in Order to Fund Health Care Reform?" talks about how President Barack Obama mentioned that it is a possibility that soda could be taxed in order to pay for the government-run health care reform.The clip consists of the host, Stuart Varney, interviewing Republican congressman, Jeb Hensarling, about the idea of taxing soda. The host of the clip makes a point that it seems reasonable to put a tax on unhealthy foods in the midst of an obesity crisis. However, Repulican congressman counteracts this statement by saying that tax on soda "seems like the knee-jerk reaction of the Obama administration is, if in doubt, tax it." He feels tha the Obama administrations way of fixing problems is to tax it. He goes on to say later that America is a free society and people have the ability to choose what foods they want to eat. On the other end, Varney asks, isn't it okay for the "government to push people in a certain direction, especially when you have a got a crisis of obesity?" When Hensarling responds he agrees that something needs to be done about the obesity crisis, but goes in another direction by saying that we don't need a government run health care reform.
I feel that the Republican congressman is taking this opportunity to deter people from the government run health care reform rather than answering the question, is it a good idea to tax unhealthy foods to pay for the health care reform? Do you feel that the taxing soda is a good way to pay for the health care reform and will possibly help fixing the problem of obesity or do you feel that there are other more beneficial ways to pay for the health care reform? Do you agree with the congressman that it isn't fair that the government can decide what is best for us by taxing junk food?
A tax on "unhealthy" products seems a feeble attempt to fund a very expensive plan. Sure this could possibly slow down obesity and give some little financial help but this will in no way help the uninsured get coverage for serious illnesses that are in no way associated with being over weight. If anything people would probably stop buying these products which would leave less tax money to help the poor. This would just make skinnier poor people.
ReplyDeleteTo label something "unhealthy" is a matter of subjective opinion. What right does the government have to tax foods that are deemed unhealthy and therefore cost more? And according to who are these products labeled? I agree with Zach when he mentions that taxing these products would be a very feeble attempt to fund this major reform. There has to be a more substantial and long term way to fund reform. We are talking about millions of Americans who do not have access to health insurance and we want to solve the problem by creating a higher tax on food. The two seem very unrelated. Are we trying to spark a health care reform by making soda more expensive? Sure a substantial amount of money could probably be made because of the popularity of these products, but what happens when people stop buying into this by purchasing other, more deemed healthy products? Maybe then the government will raise the tax on water to fund health care.
ReplyDelete