[net.med] Smoking and the National Debt

werner@aecom.UUCP (Craig Werner) (11/21/85)

>  You guys have the wrong approach. Don't you realize that every person
>  who smokes saves the government about $35,000 (or so I read in
>  Scientific American). Seems medical costs are more than offset by the
>  decreased social security payments. (:} 
> 
>  Hang in there guys, you'll pay off the national debt yet!

	That's true if one only considers Medicare (-CARE)
	Unfortunately, last this doesn't take into account Smoking-related
disability paid for by MediCAID -- which last year accounted for $7Billion.
Then there is the lost income (and hence income tax) due to increased sick days
from all sources, which according to the Congressional Budget Office amounted
to a minimum of $10Billion additional. And that buys a lot of MX missiles.

-- 

				Craig Werner
				!philabs!aecom!werner
                 "Never go to a doctor whose office plants have died."