Lighting up may cost you under the Affordable Care Act. The law bars insurance companies from charging people higher premiums for costly medical conditions, so diabetics or cancer patients pay the same rate as healthy people the same age. But there's no protection for those addicted to cigarettes: States are authorized to let insurers charge smokers as much as 50 percent more than nonsmokers. Not all 19 percent of American adults who smoke will get squeezed. Some states, including California, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, ban the practice of charging smokers higher rates. Even where it's allowed, insurance companies may not want to alienate potential customers with increased premiuias. Many are forgoing the surcharges or tacking on lower fees.
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