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©Copyright 2000 Rogers Media. The following article first appeared in the August 2001 edition of
BENEFITS CANADA magazine.
BENEFITS TRENDS
Time to butt in
A new study highlights the impact of smoking on disability rates. Should employers take a
tougher stance in protecting their benefits plans?
By Kathryn Dorrell
I hate smoking. I hacked my way through the Canadian Pension and
Benefits Institute Annual National Conference in Montreal, where the only seating options in
restaurants are smoking or chain smoking. After regaining use of my vocal chords and stocking
up on eye drops (thankfully, my benefits plan picked up that tab), I begrudgingly took a
perfectly clean outfit to the dry cleaners because it reeked of that unmistakable odour smokers
leave in their wake.
So it was with a smug sense of satisfaction that I read the dismal outlook on
smoking in Statistics Canada's latest Health Population Survey upon my return to the
office. There is no shortage of reports on the evils of smoking; we know all about the
morbidity rates. But this study is an exception, and of particular interest to employers trying
to tame unruly health and disability costs--especially those who are anti-smoking vigilantes
like yours truly.
What is different about this study is that it clearly illustrates the enormous
burden smokers put on disability programs. According to the report, women who smoke have eight
more years of disability than non-smokers, while male smokers have an additional seven. "This
finding is especially remarkable given that the risk of acquiring a disability increases with
age and non-smokers enjoy a longer life," say the study's authors.
The study also shows that smokers suffer more frequently from several diseases
at the same time. Half won't reach age 65 without experiencing chronic illness--another burden
for benefits plans.
Employers cite smoking as the second most critical health issue in the latest
wellness study by Buffet Taylor & Associates. While organizations are aware of the problem,
are they doing enough to address its impact on their benefits plans?
It's time to move beyond the traditional feel-good and paternalistic efforts
such as coverage for Zyban and workplace smoking cessation programs, and adopt a tough-love
approach. Employers need to make smokers pay for their habit--literally. The retail insurance
and benefits industry has charged smokers higher premiums for decades. Why shouldn't employers
do the same?
Ed Buffet, president of Buffet Taylor & Associates in Whitby, Ont., says
the concept "flies in the face of what group insurance is all about." Cynthia Callard,
executive director for Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada in Toronto, isn't a big supporter of
the idea either. "We need to help people quit smoking," she explains, "not just make it more
expensive for them to die."
Am I the only one who is tired of hearing about smokers' rights? There has
been a wealth of programs and deterrents for smokers. The problem is, these efforts obviously
aren't that effective. If the ominous warnings that virtually threaten imminent death on
cigarette packages aren't enough to stop people from smoking, what is? It's worth trying a kick
in the old pocket book.
Deborah Jones, president of Well-Advised Consulting Inc. in Vancouver, doesn't
think that making smokers pay more for benefits will act as much of a deterrent. But, as a
non-smoker, she doesn't object to the idea. Jones adds that this approach would certainly
contain health costs.
The strategy of making smokers pay makes more sense than pouring benefits
dollars into teaching smokers something they already know.
Kathryn Dorrell is managing editor with Benefits Canada.
kdorrell@rmpublishing.com.
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