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

Under the NHS-backed scheme, those who shed 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 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 U.K. adults are clinically overweight or obese and the NHS spends US$8 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 set an example for patients.

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 report said. The weight loss incentive scheme was announced as part of a wider shakeup of the healthcare system in England proposed by NHS bosses.

 英国医保计划奖励减肥

为了应对日益严重的国民肥胖危机，英国政府出台了新的激励计划，减肥将得到奖励。

根据NHS（英国国民健康保险）的方案，成功减肥的人将会获得现金或者购物券。

奖励根据减肥多少而有所浮动，具体规定尚未明确。

然而，该计划仅适用于有工作的人 — 政府也要求企业给予减肥员工奖励。

企业将会获得政府给予的税收优惠和资金用于开设减肥或健身课程。

NHS为减轻肥胖病人带来的沉重负担采取了一系列措施，此举是其中之一。

英国超过2/3的成年人被临床诊断为超重或肥胖，NHS每年花费80亿美元治疗与肥胖相关的各种疾病。

该计划要求NHS员工为国民树立榜样。

NHS办公地点将会减少供应不健康食品，员工还将接受身体健康评估。NHS130万员工中约有70万名超重或者肥胖。

NHS的英格兰首席行政西蒙·史蒂文斯今年早些时候说，NHS的员工在教化公众减少热量摄入前，必须率先“行动起

来”。他说，太多医院给患者和员工供应“薯条汉堡餐” — 为了给患者树立榜样，员工将禁止在医院食堂吃垃圾食品。

一项报告称，NHS必须齐心协力解决引发健康不佳的根源问题 — 如饮食不良、饮酒、吸烟等。

NHS的管理者要对英国医保制度做一次大的整改，宣布的减肥激励方案是其中一部分。

Words to Learn 相关词汇

   【减肥】

    jiǎnféi

    shed pounds

    lose weight

    【激励】

    jīlì

    incentive

    stimulus, spur, incitement, impulse, encouragement