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Putting the “Health” Back in Healthcare

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By healthhabits, October 17, 2010

Canada’s healthcare system may be on the verge of a massive change.

Instead of continuing to spend billions of dollars simply treating the symptoms of disease, Canada’s health ministers have agreed that:

the promotion of health and the prevention of disease, disability and injury are a priority and necessary to the sustainability of the health system.

They also agreed that the main causes of death, disease and disability in Canada today are chronic diseases and injuries, and that a large proportion of chronic diseases, disabilities and injuries can be prevented, or at least delayed.

They continued by saying that more emphasis needs to be placed on the promotion of health and on preventing or delaying chronic diseases, disabilities, and injuries.

Doing this will improve the quality of life of Canadians while reducing disparities in health and the impact these conditions have on individuals, families, communities, the health-care system and on society.

OMG

A healthcare system that focuses on health.

Fingers crossed people.

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Reference

• A Declaration on Prevention and Promotion from Canada’s Ministers of Health and Health Promotion/Healthy Living

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Dalton McGuinty & his Children’s Activity Tax Credit

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By healthhabits, September 20, 2010

image: Chris Doucette - Toronto Sun

Since July 1st, fitness-loving Ontarians have had to swallow an 8% increase in their gym memberships, workout gear, protein shakes, swimming lessons, etc……thanks to the HST.

Also since July 1st, industry groups like the  Fitness Industry Council of Canada along with some municipal governments have been pressuring the Ontario government to introduce a “non-refundable provincial income tax credit patterned after the federal “Children’s Fitness Tax Credit”.

So, it should come as no surprise that yesterday, Premier McGuinty held a press conference at a Toronto YMCA to announce his new brand spanking new Children’s Activity Tax Credit.

The Plan….

• Allows parents to claim up to $500 of eligible expenses per child on sports, arts and other activities incurred on or after Jan. 1, 2010.
• Families would receive a refundable tax credit worth up to $50 per child under 16 years of age, and up to $100 for a child under the age of 18 with a disability.
• And according to the gov’t, this tax credit would provide about $75-million each year to assist the cost of registering kids in programs and would benefit 1.8 million children.

Analysis of “The Plan”

According to the official government opposition…

• “The government basically put a tax on children’s activities and then a couple months later turns around and provides a tax credit,” said NDP leader Andrea Horwath.
• “The tax credit, in many cases, won’t make up for the amount of dollars being gouged from families,” she added.

Let’s test that theory…

• If a parent spends $500 on her kid’s burgeoning hockey career, she pays an additional 8% or $40 in new HST tax - Boooo!!!!
• But thanks to the new tax credit, she gets $50 back on her tax return - Woo Hoo!!! Free government money!!!

Unless….she keeps spending money on her kid’s physical fitness…and ends up paying more in HST than she receives via the tax credit.

And considering that the prototypical Canadian parent spends thousands of dollars on their little Crosbys & Ovechkins, odds are that the $50 Ontario tax credit is just going to be a proverbial drop in the HST bucket.

But, what about all of those low-income Canadian  parents who can’t afford to put their kids into hockey in the first place?

Maybe this tax credit was designed for them.

Maybe this tax credit is going to help Ontario’s low-income families become more active & reduce their high levels of obesity.

Or….maybe not.

According to this research, only 28.2 % of “low income” parents claimed the federal fitness tax credit for the 2007 tax year, while approximately 55 % of “high income” parents in the highest income quartile had claimed it.

Based on this data, the researchers concluded that “household income was a significant factor in whether Canadian parents were more likely to report their child being in organized physical activities, and if the parent was more likely to be aware of and claim the CFTC”.

“It appears that a tax credit such as the CFTC will only benefit those people who can afford to pay the costs of registration for a PA program and carry that burden through to the end of the tax year.”

Conclusion

I have no reason to doubt that Premier McGuinty is genuinely interested in helping Ontario’s kids become more physically active.

However, this tax credit idea seems:

1. Politically self serving, and
2. Ineffective.

And when you consider that 87% of Canadian kids are not getting their recommended daily amount of exercise, perhaps we should take the estimated $75 million in tax credits and spend them in a more effective fashion.

For example…. $75 million would pay for 1250 new fitness parks.…that Ontarians could use…for FREE.

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Dalton McGuinty & his Children’s Activity Tax Credit is a post from: Health and Fitness articles

activity, canada, children, dalton mcguinty, Exercise, featured, Fitness, Health, I Wanna Be Healthy, mcguinty, news, ontario, politics, tax, tax credit, toronto | Credit Image, Dalton Mcguinty, Doucette, Eligible Expenses, Fitness Industry, Free Government Money, Gym Memberships, Hockey Career, Hst Tax, Income Tax Credit, Municipal Governments, Ndp Leader, Ontario Government, Physical Fitness, Premier Mcguinty, Provincial Income Tax, Refundable Tax Credit, Spending Money, Swimming Lessons, Toronto Sun, Workout Gear

U.S. Government Subsidizes Healthy Food

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By healthhabits, August 28, 2010

Every year, the U.S. federal government subsidizes America’s junk food habit with bazillions of dollars in tax breaks & subsidies.

But today, in a shocking turn of events, the USDA has announced the creation of a new “healthy eating” program.

Or, in other words… The U.S. government is subsidizing healthy food.

The $20 million program is being tested in Hampden County, Mass. and is designed to encourage healthy eating among low income families.

Specifically, The Healthy Incentives Pilot will enroll 7,500 randomly selected SNAP (aka Food Stamps) households to receive the HIP incentives.

For every dollar that participants spend on fruits and vegetables using their SNAP Electronic Benefit Transfer cards, 30 cents will be added to their benefit balance – thus cutting the cost of fruits and vegetables by almost one-third.

And if this Dutch research is correct, this cost cutting measure will result in the higher consumption of fruits & vegetables.

And to make things even better, this program will operate in tandem with the Food Bank Farm program already being sponsored by the Food bank of Western Mass. (The FB Farm program promotes local food consumption)

Conclusion

This program seems pretty great to me.

• It reduces the cost of fruits & vegetables
• It increases the consumption of fruits & vegetables
• It increases the consumption of local fruits & vegetables

The only drawback seems to be the $20 million.

Maybe the USDA should raise the cash by slashing some of the current USDA junk food subsidies.

.

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