The Buffalo News

Gov. David Paterson’s bold proposal to add an 18 percent tax on sugary soft drinks makes a lot of sense. Soft drink manufacturers have spent millions to market their products to be consumed like water - anytime, anywhere and in excessive amounts. People routinely down sugared, super-sized soft drinks with meals and when they’re thirsty, quickly pushing them over their maximum calorie requirement for the day.

Sugary soft drinks have been pinpointed in medical studies as the biggest contributors to our obesity epidemic. The 50 percent to 60 percent rise in soft drink consumption from 1977-1997 parallels a roughly 50 percent rise in the obesity rate during the same period.

Obesity has hit New York State hard, particularly in the wallet. We rank second among U. S. states in adult obesity-related medical expenditures, spending nearly $6.1 billion yearly. And 81 percent of those medical costs are already born by the taxpayer through Medicaid and Medicare payments.

With these points in mind, it makes sense for soft drink consumers to help offset the state’s growing obesity-related medical costs and to fund obesity prevention programs. And if the “obesity tax” discourages overconsumption of these drinks and helps to reverse the epidemic, that’s a huge benefit.

Nancy Huehnergarth
Director, New York State Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Alliance