I'm all for incentives that motivate people to adopt a healthier lifestyle. Alberta seems to embrace this ideal too, but a rumoured incentive being tossed around by our Provincial Government seems rather narrow-minded. The future may bring a tax rebate for people who belong to health clubs or recreation associations. The lack of fairness and potential for abuse with such an idea seems obvious to me. Why should a health club member get a rebate? There is no guarantee a member is going to attend often enough to actually make a difference in their health. More importantly, why wouldn't those of us who spend our hard earned money on our own exercise equipment qualify for a rebate too?
I offer an alternate suggestion that could save the Alberta Health system a lot of money over the long term. Make professional smoking cessation programs free - including prescription drugs like Zyban and the patch. I believe a lot more people would consider quitting if the process was free. I did (courtesy of a Canadian military cessation program that was free for members) and I haven't looked back. Six years and counting.
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