THE FAT EPIDEMIC / Fighting the Stigma
Excerpt from "Citing Intolerance, Obese People Take Steps to Press Cause"
By CAREY GOLDBERG
Little Help From the Law
Many of the daily battles some fat people face do not lend themselves to the
courtroom, however ó from plane seats that are too narrow to strangers who
spout cruel taunts to doctors who refuse to believe that many diets only
backfire. And then there are the insurers.
"The hardest thing to live with as a fat person is that you can't get health
insurance," said Ms. Berg of the Council on Size and Weight Discrimination.
"When people call me up and say, `My H.M.O. kicked me out; what should I
do?' I have nothing to tell them. Nothing."
A person's weight does influence many health insurers, and a significantly
overweight applicant can be turned down, said Janet Trautwein, director of
federal policy for the National Association of Health Underwriters. "It's
not an appearance thing," she said. "It's just strictly a health status
factor, and it's used in combination with other factors like, `Do you smoke,
have high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes?' "
In some states, she said, insurers may charge higher premiums for overweight
members.
Elizabeth Fisher, a programmer in Baton Rouge, La., decided not to let one
such moment of daily difficulty go by. She was buying a new car, and found
that the one she wanted, a Honda Odyssey minivan, did not make a seat belt
big enough for her; nor would Honda offer an extender, as many other
companies do.
This summer, Ms. Fisher petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration to require carmakers to offer the option of longer seat belts
on new vehicles and seat-belt extenders on existing ones. Her fight had such
resonance that it has gained national publicity.
"This issue is much larger than one fat woman who can't buckle her seat
belt," said Ms. Fisher, who is expecting a decision soon from the agency.
"There are millions of people in the United States who weigh more than 215
pounds, the current upper weight limit required for seat belts by N.H.T.S.A.
And because fat is more prevalent in certain racial and ethnic populations,
more common in women than in men, and more common in older people than
young, denying fat people the protection of being included within the limits
of federal seat-belt regulations disproportionately affects these
disadvantaged groups."
In other news, after learning of Ms. Fisher's delimna, the Honey Baked Ham
Company, 1-866-492-HAMS, offered her 25 pounds of ham a month until she lost
125 pounds. Ms. Fisher declined to take them up on her offer stating that
she liked being fat, that it was her right, and just because she is an
unsightly member of a growing minority, she saw no reason why everyone else
in the world should not accomodate her. Ralston Purina made an unspecified
offer to Ms. Fisher, also declined.
Honda Says No to Seat Belt Extenders: Larger Passengers at Risk 
918i.88223$p47.33846@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net:
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