Originally Posted by
Hypno Toad
Sorry to correct you, however, non-fit people file claims that eat away at the bottom line. The company my wife works for offers a $120 per year per person incentive for wellness (measured with an annual health check - I rock their socks off every year).
The insurance company wants fit clients, they are cheap to insure, like me, I have no medications, no chronic issues, I only go to a doctor for the wellness checks. And I still pay the same amount as the guy who never gets off the couch and has a fist full of pills to take every day.
You're almost right. Insurance companies are in business to make a profit, not make people healthier. They don't like risk they can't control, and are happy to take in premiums from unhealthy customers as long as the odds are in favor of the insurance company. They don't like paying for things that will save anyone money beyond the expiration date of your insurance policy, and that's why they won't pay for things that you'd think would be common sense to pay for.
Wendell Potter knows a lot about this. He's an exinsurance company big shot who got a conscience and wrote about some of the things mentioned above if you want to know more.