Whose health is it anyway?

Although few disagree that everyone wants the best possible health, who should bear the responsibility for reaching this goal - employers, individuals or the state? Earlier this year, six out of 10 doctors said the NHS could not afford to provide free healthcare for all and that some people should have to pay for services. They even called for NHS treatment to be withheld from the elderly and the obese. This view was echoed by more than a third of the general public who said that those who do not look after their health should be charged for treatment of self-inflicted illnesses. When a...