De l’incitation à la mutualisation : Pourquoi taxer ?

This article assesses, from the moral point of view, the possible justifications in the recourse to taxation for promoting “healthy” behavior. The objective is to demonstrate that such an instrument would receive a bet- ter justification, i.e. more in tune with egalitarian principles respectful of individual freedom, if it expressed a logic of mutualisation. In that light, arguments pertaining to individual well-being and social efficiency are discussed in order to point out their effectiveness and limitations. Through their limitations, they natural- ly introduce a third way to apprehend the problem, in terms of mutualisation. This latter principle is less a radical questioning of precedent arguments than a reformulation of the efficiency notion and a restriction of the scope of claims to individual well-being. It is based on two ideas. The first is that the reference to a notion of responsibility, even a mild one, is necessary. Furthermore, this responsibility should be conceived as being shared between producers and consumers, and should also be limited to the financial domain. The second is that mutualisation cannot be disconnected from general egalitarian intuitions.