BlogHer - #1 Way to Save Money: Don't Be Female - Comments

Re: Magic Money

duhpookie — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 00:01:23 -0600

So, all of us whiner women who just don't get it are the ones begging for a free lunch? Spoken like a man who works in the industry -- $11 billion dollars in profit in 2006. As long as all your needs are looked after, you're happy and everyone else is a whiner. Perhaps the problem lies in the fact that health insurance is a "for profit" pursuit. If healthcare really is a fundamental right, then it should be nationalized to control cost and ensure everyone has equal access to coverage. Hmmm. I'm going to guess that you'd call that socialism, therefore pure evil, right? Maybe all of us women aren't whiners. Maybe we're tired of the world being run by men who lack compassion and don't look out for others.

Bobbie

I think that is exactly what is being said

geekgirl — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 15:46:39 -0500

I think that's exactly what is being suggested - that men should pay more to cover our "womanly health-care costs."

Women don't get pregnant all by themselves. There is no reason why you should be the one getting a free lunch. Unless you come from a family consisting entirely of men, you will also benefit from equal access to health care.

Yes, we women can do enough math to understand that those costs will need to be a part of the budget.

Christine

Geek Thoughts Technology doesn't have to be boring.
Frog In North Georgia No, I'm not from around here.

Who should pay for this??? Magic money?

californiaguy — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 08:12:49 -0500

While I sympathize with many of the themes presented here (ie dry cleaning costing more, which is illegal now) I am just mind-boggled that you people just don't get it. Insurance companies spread the risk of paying out across a large number of people, and thus make it affordable for individuals to be "protected" against catastrophe. Monthly birth-control expenses are not catastrophes. They are predictable, routine, and ordinary. You say "why won't they pay for that"? well, they could, but then your rates are going to go up, by approximately the amount that you otherwise would be spending (or maybe a little less, since not everyone uses birth control).

There is no magic here, folks. Money comes in, it goes out, the insurance company pays its overhead, and what is left over is profit. The company categorizes people according to risk, in order to collect enough money to cover the expenses likely to be incurred by that person, statistically speaking, as a member of that group.

This categorization can be taken to two extremes: everyone pays the same fees, or everyone pays completely individualized fees based on your personal profile. In the former case, Sally HealthNut who has had a tubal ligation, is on the lean side of her recommended BMI, and who jogs 45 minutes per day is going to pay the same rate as Joe Fatslob, who works for a software company, smokes like a chimney, is overweight, has high blood pressure, and gets no exercise. This is pretty much what Medicare is all about. Everyone pays in at the same rate, regardless of how stupid and careless you are with your health. Private insurance companies don't like this because it means healthy people pay for unhealthy ones, and they know their customers know this.

Since it is a competitive business vying for customers, they devised finer gradations for rating people. This takes us to the other extreme of the ratings game: they give you a comprehensive health checkup, review your entire medical file, then quote you a rate. This requires a lot of work, so there is a limit to how cost-effective it can be.

Somewhere in the middle of these two extremes, we find the reality. The easiest way to categorize your risk grouping is by age, height, weight, sex, blood pressure, a few health-related questions, and there you go. You now have efficiently categorized a person into a risk group.

The only other factor that goes into this regards the benefits you want the plan to pay for. The more benefits, the more expensive the plan. Remember, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH. You might think you are being discriminated against, but from a purely medical point of view, a woman poses more medical/financial cost-risks than a man, all other things being equal. And yes, reproductive complexities make this disparity what it is. Sorry, but men and women are not the same.

You can legislate equality in insurance rates -- eliminate the distinctions based solely on sex difference -- but then men will simply pay MORE to cover your womanly health-care costs, and whether you think that's fair or not, that's what will happen. No doubt about it. (Or, perhaps, coverage for some things, such as maternity care, will simply no longer be available).

Stop whining and start thinking "big picture" here. I hear a lot of gimme-gimme and I don't think the principal of TANSTAAFL is being properly considered.

Excellent post! At first I

Gwynneth — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:16:30 -0500

Excellent post! At first I thought you were going to say that women are spendthrifts! One thing that really bothers me is how insurance companies won't pay for contraception, or make you have at least 2 kids before a tubal ligation!

I used to have Blue Cross Masterhealth Plus (back in the halcion early 90's). Strangely, having my one and only child "cost" almost TWENTY-THOUSAND DOLLARS (and most stuff went normally), yet they wouldn't pay $400 for my husband to get a vasectomy, nor even for a diaphragm! We called them and their only answer was, "It's just our policy"! What a waste...think how many unwanted kids resulted from that.

The monthly supplies

Suzanne Reisman — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:07:35 -0500

Yes! A perfect example of why it is so expensive to be a woman! In Gloria Steinem's great essay, "If Men Menstruated" (or something along those lines), she wrote that if men menstruated, pads and tampons would be heavily subsidized by the government, since they are necessary.

Suzanne Reisman, Contributing Editor - Feminism & Gender
Campaign for Unshaved Snatch (CUSS) & Other Rants

Great Post!

MarieP — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 13:15:59 -0500

I just joined here - and already am loving reading the posts! This one is (sadly!) so true. I live in Canada, but I believe it is much the same here. It is a sad fact that us women are just such a terrible burden and just such risk-takers - I mean, really! The fact that we put our bodies through the whole having a baby process - of course we should be paying more! (Hopefully the sarcasm is noted!)

I have always been frustrated about the fact that we also have extra costs we have to deal with because we are women - such as the monthly supplies we need - and stuff like this really frustrates me! We get paid less, we pay more for insurance - and we still have extra little expenses we have to deal with just because we are women! Geez....

Thanks for the post!

MomsDotComDream

Thanks for bringing attention to this

deborah91473 — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:31:44 -0500

Suzanne,

Thank you for such a passionate, well written article. Every woman should be required to read it. It's already bad enough that we are paid less than men, but we're charged more, too.

I've read that women also pay more for services like dry cleaning compared to men. No idea why on that one.

Deborah Johnson

A Writer's Voice: http://litchick73.blogspot.com/

Social change needed all the time

Wilma Ham — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:21:14 -0500

Interesting. I don't live anywhere near the States but I love all the issues that are coming up as a result of the elections.
I have read about so many issues and now about the higher insurance costs for women.

I love how it makes us look at us, how we humans have organized ourselves OR let us being organized in ways that suits WHO?

For me it shows whe are nowhere near a healthy society and that I really have to watch my own sanity, my own health and who I am letting take care of me.
As a result I have decided to take responsibility for my own life as much as possible, take a stand and make sure I also am connected to people who can care for me as I can care for them and distance myself from those organized nonsense as possible.
I play their game when I have to, notice what I don't like and watch that I am not getting sucked into their game.

Yes, getting angry is a way to deal with it, but then I am looking for a way out as much as I can and find cover in other ways in which I have the power.
And there are ways if you take the time to look and you are serious.

I have as little insurance as possible and take responsibility for that.
I take good care of things myself and if something gets stolen I replace it myself.

All that has been an interesting journey and very freeing from fear and feeling victimized.
I had to really connect with people as my community is now my insurance.
My car get stolen, I can borrow some of friends etc.

Sounds a bit new agy? I find it very common sense and grounded and practical.

Wilma Ham

www.wilmasblog.com

Thanks

Sweet Life — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 14:11:34 -0500

For bringing this subject to light. As you can tell by my rant (linked above) I take issue with paying EIGHT TIMES my husband's rate for insurance. They never asked him ANY follow up questions, and he's had several sports-related surgeries! And yet - his rating is $80 per month, mine $650 for the SAME (minimal) coverage.

Women are the backbone of society, and yet we are also considered a liability because of our body parts? You can't gaze lovingly at your perfectly frosted cake, and eat a huge piece of it, too.

I've had a manager

KatieBeez — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:31:51 -0500

who told me, to my face no less, that I'm going to be trouble for him at some point in the future because I'm going to want to "have babies" someday.

Sadly, at that moment I did imagine that my no-sick days and minimal absences for doctor's appointments would probably disappear if I ever wanted to have children. Shame on me for letting him make me feel bad for even a second.

Here's the thing - and I think it's a real problem for both men and women. In the United States many employees are afraid of their personal lives getting in the way of their professional lives, or even the perception this. I do not know the average maternity/paternity leave for the USA but I know that in Canada, and also here in Germany, you can choose to have almost a year of leave without any big to-do about it. During the leave you get a percentage of your salary. And this time can be split between the parents, AND you don't get shame-on-you attitude, at least not that I have seen.

Bravo

kellenvh — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:02:00 -0500

An excellent topic, well stated. And perhaps women are more expensive to insure because 1) we often bear sole responsibility for maintaining birth control, 2) we bear full responsibility for childbirth, 3) we bear the majority of the responsibility of child rearing, and 4) we bear the majority of the burden for household maintenance after completing a full day's work.

We also tend to seek help for mental health rather than holding it all in and then abusing our partner or committing suicide. And we are penalized for that?

Insurance Woes

Pam — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:47:20 -0500

Maybe women are more expensive to insure because we are frequently
discriminated against, which makes us stressed, which leads to health
problems, which leads to doctors, which makes insurance companies angry
because they hate when you spend their precious profits on health care.

Snork snork.

D'ya think my insurance will cover the sex change I need to get lower rates?

Okay, seriously. Is there anything broken in QUITE the way health insurance is broken. And, as I am always the broken record on this, WHAT ABOUT THE SELF EMPLOYED, my presidentially aspiring friends? We have got to pry our health away from employers and insurance companies and give it back to doctors and humans.

Sigh.

Nerd's Eye View

I plead socially inflicted insanity

Suzanne Reisman — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:39:27 -0500

Hee. I am not sure that our agreement is not a good indication that you don't have a persecution complex (my nickname is Ranty McRanterstein), but I'm glad that we can fight back against discrimination together. :)

Suzanne Reisman, Contributing Editor - Feminism & Gender
Campaign for Unshaved Snatch (CUSS) & Other Rants

Thank you for that Suzanne

geekgirl — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 12:35:10 -0500

If you think so too, then I must not have a persecution complex.

But seriously, the taxing of employer sponsored health insurance was the last straw for me and the McCain campaign.

Christine

Geek Thoughts Technology doesn't have to be boring.
Frog In North Georgia No, I'm not from around here.

#1 Way to Save Money: Don't Be Female

Suzanne Reisman — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 09:46:44 -0500

Due to the woes of the economy, BlogHer has been bringing the blog reading public excellent information on ways to save money. While BlogHer's contributing editors have been doing a wonderful job, I'm going to cut to the chase and tell you, point blank, the #1 way to save money: don't be female. Whether paying more for dry cleaning or earning less for performing the same job as a man, being female is costly! The latest evidence indicates that women are also charged more than men for the exact same insurance coverage. I know we should be grateful and all just to have access to equally low quality insurance as men, just like Lily Ledbetter should have just appreciated being allowed to work even if she was systemically paid less than even men with less experience, but still. I'm angry! Let's take a look at the issue, shall we?

The New York Times reports:

Striking new evidence has emerged of a widespread gap in the cost of health insurance, as women pay much more than men of the same age for individual insurance policies providing identical coverage, according to new data from insurance companies and online brokers.

Some insurance executives expressed surprise at the size and prevalence of the disparities, which can make a woman’s insurance cost hundreds of dollars a year more than a man’s. Women’s advocacy groups have raised concerns about the differences, and members of Congress have begun to question the justification for them.

The new findings, which are not easily explained away, come amid anxiety about the declining economy. More and more people are shopping for individual health insurance policies because they have lost jobs that provided coverage.

The emphasis is mine. Because you know what? I am really, really angry about this. I mean, I shouldn't be, since women are such a burden on insurance companies and everything, but being female, I'm prone to hysteria. But don't take my emotional, irrational reactions this news alone - even some men are puzzling over the situation.

Mrs. Micah's Finance for a Freelance Life beat the Times reporting by three days. On Monday, Mr. Micah guest posted:

...suddenly I remembered my health insurance bill must be imminently due. Leaping from my computer onto the nearest pile of mail, I found not only my own bill, but (shock!) Mrs. Micah’s.

We’re insured separately, you see, because I’m certifiably insane... I’m just kidding. But not really. I do have to take prescription medication for depression. And depression runs in the family...If we applied as a couple, we thought I’d get rejected and that would slow down Mrs. Micah’s acceptance.

Now, back to last week . . .Checking the due dates, I decided it would be best if I did the check-writing this time... I was about to make out both checks for the same amount, when I had a stroke of intelligence. I double-checked Mrs. Micah’s bill.

Turns out she has to pay a full eleven dollars more than me per month.

A couple days after the bill-paying incident, we went to visit a couple friends. When it comes to health-insurance risk, we and they are practically identical.

And from what they told us during our visit, we’re more the same than we ever thought.

So, who designed this system?! If it happens to you, you think it must be a fluke. If it happens to you and your friends, it’s got to be a conspiracy.

Still skeptical? Read Andrea's raging-yet-hilarious open letter to Blue Shield at Sweet Life:

The one telling me that after all those personal questions you asked me on a daily basis (for weeks, no, months) finally helped you make a decision on my request to have a lower rating for my health insurance. The one where you told me that, instead of lowering my rating, you were actually raising it.

And she didn't even ask for maternity coverage, which was very considerate of her. I mean, why on earth should women expect others to share the burden of having a baby or anything? It is totally outrageous, I know. It's totally women's faults that we get pregnant instead of our husbands/boyfriends/partners/dates/one night stands/whatever. No one should have to pay for that or anything. It's like asking everyone in society to chip in for public school costs and all that. Worse, even if we aren't knocked up, those uteruses (uteri?) and breasts that we have demand regular check ups for maintenance. One or two gynecology appointments a year will totally cut into the bonus pool of insurance execs since they so diminish profits. And forget mammograms! They cost a few hundred bucks a pop!

Even skipping over the whole human reproduction thing (although there's much more said about it by Anglachel's Journal, if you choose to go down that slippery slope), there's an important subtheme here: not only do Andrea and Mrs. Micah pay higher rates for health insurance because they are female, they were also subjected to significant investigations of their health and personal history than men. Mr. Micah noted that he is prone to depression, and he was shocked when the insurance company asked him no other questions but put Mrs. Micah "through the wringer." Several people speculated that this is because women go to the doctor more often than men, and thus are more expensive. Except that receiving routine preventive care is significantly less expensive than what medical care costs if a person ignores a problem until it is a very huge problem.

You know what? Just thinking about this is raising my blood pressure. My heart is pounding harder and harder. Maybe women are more expensive to insure because we are frequently discriminated against, which makes us stressed, which leads to health problems, which leads to doctors, which makes insurance companies angry because they hate when you spend their precious profits on health care.

Since the election is coming up next week, I might as well throw in some politics. John McCain has been wandering the nation happily explaining his health insurance plan to Americans. Those of us who receive insurance through work (which, incidentally, charges the same premiums to men and women - the socialist bastards!) will now pay taxes on this benefit. Then married folks get an exciting $5,000 ($2,500 if you are single, even if you have kids) tax credit to compensate for the new taxes, theoretically covering the new taxes we'll pay, making it a wash. I'm not sure why this is simpler than what we have, but whatever. The great news is that many employers will drop insurance coverage, so lots of people will be forced to buy their own policies. And in buying our own policies, we can expect to pay about $12,000 per year for premiums, which you may have noticed is more than the $5,000 tax credit. Except that women will likely pay more for their premiums since we now know that they pay anywhere from22%-49% more than men. Incidentally, McCain is not offering women larger tax credits to make up the difference. Even better, he will deregulate the insurance marketplace, so if you live in a state that requires health insurance companies to cover mammograms, birth control, and other women's "health" (to borrow McCain's term), your higher premiums may very likely not include those needs.

So, all in all, the best way to save money is to not be female. Good luck to the 50% of us who fall under that expense category.

Suzanne also blogs about life at Campaign for Unshaved Snatch (CUSS) & Other Rants. Her first book, Off the Beaten (Subway) Track, is about unusual things to see and do in New York City.