英國NHS計劃獎勵減肥者

Overweight people will be paid to lose weight, under radical new Government plans unveiled today to tackle the escalating obesity crisis

Under the NHS-backed scheme, those who shed the pounds will be rewarded with cash or shopping vouchers.

Incentives could be higher or lower depending on the aMount of weight a participant loses, although the amounts are still unclear.

However only those with a job will qualify - and employers will also be urged to offer incentives to staff who shed pounds.

Firms would receive tax breaks from the Government and would also some funding to set up slimming or exercise classes.

The move is part of a wider effort to ease the strain placed on the NHS by fat patients.

More than two thirds of UK adults are clinically overweight or obese and the NHS spends £5 billion a year treating obesity-related illnesses.

Under the new plans, NHS staff will also be urged to 'set a national example'.

Access to unhealthy foods on NHS premises will be cut and staff will have their health and wellbeing 'measured'.

Around 700,000 of the NHS's 1.3 million staff are either overweight or obese

NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens said earlier this year that staff must 'get our own act together' before lecturing the public on cutting down on calories.

He said too many hospitals serve 'chips and burgers' to both patients and staff - and the latter face being banned from eating junk food in hospital canteens to force them to set an example to patients.

Mr Stevens said workplace schemes to encourage weight loss have been largely ignored - despite success abroad.

He personally managed to lose nearly 3st thanks to a weight-loss incentive scheme at his previous job, the rance firm United Healthcare.

Mr Stevens said the tax-payer funded NHS has led to a 'blind spot' about the healthcare of employees.

He explained: 'Employers in many countries have developed voluntary schemes for their employees whereby, for example, you actually get cash back based on participation in Weight Watchers, or other type schemes.'

Asked what sorts of rewards could be offered, he said: 'It could be shopping vouchers, it could be cash, it could be prizes.'

It is understood the NHS plans to 'challenge' firms to bring in such schemes rather than offer them money.

The NHS must also make a concerted effort to address the root causes of ill health - such as poor diets, alcohol consumption and smoking, a landmark report published today said,

The weight loss incentive scheme was announced as part of a wider shake-up of the healthcare system in England in the next parliament proposed by NHS bosses.

Other measures include tax cuts for volunteers and 'breaking down the boundaries' between GPs and hospitals.

The report also includes plans to recruit an army of volunteers to help feed elderly dementia patients in hospital or care for them at home.

These members of the public would then get 10 per cent off their annual council tax bill – as much as £200 depending on where they live.

It does not yet specify how much voluntary work would need to be done to be entitled to this benefit or the exact tasks entailed.爲了應對日益嚴重的國民肥胖危機，英國政府近日出臺了一項新的激勵計劃，提出肥胖者減肥將得到獎勵。

根據NHS（英國國民健康保險制度）的這個方案，那些減重的人將會獲得現金或者購物券。

獎勵根據減多少而有所浮動，儘管減多少尚未明確。

然而，該計劃僅適用於有工作的人——政府也要求企業給予減肥員工獎勵。

企業將會獲得政府給予的稅收優惠和資金以用於開設減肥或健身課程。

爲減輕肥胖病人帶來的沉重負擔，NHS做出了巨大的努力，該舉動只是其中的一部分。

在英國，超過2/3的成年人都被臨牀診斷爲超重，NHS每年花費50億英鎊治療與肥胖相關的各種疾病。

該計劃要求NHS員工爲國民樹立榜樣。

NHS辦公地點將會減少供應不健康的食物，員工還將接受身體健康評估。

NHS130萬名員工中約有70萬名超重或者肥胖。

NHS的英國首席執行官西蒙·史蒂文斯（Simon Stevens）在今年早些時候就曾說過，NHS的員工們在教化公衆減少熱量攝入前，必須率先“行動起來”。

他說，許多醫院都會給患者和員工供應“薯條漢堡餐”——而爲了給患者樹立榜樣，員工們將被禁止在醫院食堂吃垃圾食品。

史蒂文斯稱以前在很大程度上都忽視了在工作場所推行減肥激勵方案的重要性——儘管這在海外已卓有成效。

他自己本人就成功地減掉過近20公斤，這完全得益於他工作的上一家公司，美國一家保險公司United Healthcare所推行的減肥激勵方案。

史蒂文斯說，員工的醫療保健對於由納稅人出資的NHS來說還是一個“盲區”。

他解釋道：“許多國家的僱主都已經爲其員工制定了自願健康方案，如公司可以報銷你參加慧儷輕體（Weight Watchers）或其它減肥計劃的費用。

當被問到獎勵形式都有哪些時，他說道：“可能是購物券，或者現金，也可能是獎品。”

這也可以理解爲，NHS打算“促使”企業採用上述方案而不是直接獎勵錢。

而NHS也必須齊心協力解決引發健康不佳的根源問題——如飲食不良、飲酒、吸菸等，今天發佈的一項里程碑式報告中這樣寫道。

NHS的管理者將在下一次議會中對英國醫療保健制度做一次大的整改，而宣佈的這一減肥激勵方案只是其中的一部分。

其它措施還包括爲自願減肥者減稅，以及“打破普通科醫生與醫院之間的界限”。

這項報告還提出了招募志願者的計劃，志願者們將在醫院幫忙給老年癡呆患者餵飯或者直接上門去照顧他們。

而這些志願者們將被減免10%的家庭稅——差不多價值200英鎊（合1963元），具體視她們的居住地而定。

目前還沒有詳細說明到底志願者爲這一福利需要做多少工作以及具體工作內容是什麼。