Want insurance as a single women? Think twice, cause that's how much more you'll pay.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/30/us/30insure.html?_r=2&ei=5070&emc=eta1&oref=slogin

Originally published October 29th, 2008, this article recounts the disparities between what men and women pay for identical medical insurance coverage. This is especially troubling as the job market forces more and more people to buy individual insurance coverage when they lose what job coverage they might have had. Women apparently cost insurance companies more because they use more coverage during so-called "child-bearing years," but these disparities also exist for coverage that does not include maternity care. Women can end up paying between 35-50% more for coverage equal to a male of their age. A senior vice-president for Humana Insurance was actually quoted as saying “Bearing children increases other health risks later in life, such as urinary incontinence, which may require treatment with medication or surgery.” Essentially, insurance companies are charging women more because they use the health care system more responsibly: they access more preventative care. I find the appraisals of these insurance companies extremely insulting and unfair. If women invest in preventative care, they are less likely to need more expensive care later in life, and will most likely be healthier. Isn't that the goal of insurance, anyway? Women are not allowed to be discriminated against in job-based insurance based on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and they should not be victimized by solo coverage for the same reasons.

This article focussed mostly on the cost of pregnancy and complications from pregnancy, and didn't mention the cost of preventing pregnancy as a factor for elevating cost. I've lately been trying to find more information about what amount of abortions insurance will cover, so it's interesting that this piece didn't even mention birth control or pregnancy option costs. More evidence of expectations that all women are going to bear children or want to, and more stereotypes about which gender is more costly or worrisome when it comes to their bodies.