The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The federal government would save $2.5 billion over the next 21 years by extending the benefits of the current ChildrenÕs Fitness Tax Credit program to adults, according to Dave Hardy, President of the Fitness Industry Council of Canada (FIC) following the release of an economic study on the effects of the program. ÒThe financial incentive offered by a federal adult fitness tax credit will encourage nearly one million more Canadians to get active and healthier,Ó said Hardy. ÒThese healthier Canadians will need less health care and miss less work due to illness.Ó The economic report conducted by the Centre for Spatial Economics on behalf of FIC concludes that it would take just three years for the health care cost savings resulting from a more active and healthier population to outweigh the net personal tax losses incurred by the government. The credit takes the form of a nonrefundable tax credit on eligible amounts of up to $500 per person. Projecting 21 years outward, the reportÕs findings show the government would see cumulated health care savings of $9.1 billion and cumulated net personal tax losses of $6.6 billion. Research consistently shows that a physically active person is more likely to have better health outcomes than a non-active person. Regular physical activity is effective in the prevention of several chronic diseases. ÒWith the ChildrenÕs Fitness Tax Credit, the federal government already agrees that a financial incentive is an appropriate way to increase physical activity among Canadians,Ó said Hardy. ÒExtending the program to include adults is not only good for the personal health of Canadians but also the financial health of the country. We urge the government to act quickly on this important initiative.Ó The report, ÒEconomic Benefits of an Adult Fitness Tax CreditÓ, builds on a March 2007 poll, conducted by Pollara Inc.. When polled, more than three in five Canadians supported the idea of expanding the existing federal ChildrenÕs Fitness Tax Credit to include all Canadians over the age of 16. The Adult Fitness Tax Credit campaign is your chance to tell the Government of Canada all active Canadians deserve a tax credit for contributing to lowering national health care costs while maintaining an active and healthy lifestyle. If you play a sport or belong to an association not represented on this site you think would benefit from an Adult Fitness Tax Credit, please contact [email protected] Alternatively please visit www.ficdn.ca
