Outrageous

Apparently new evidence suggests a huge disparity in the amount of money men and women pay for individual insurance policies, for the exact same plan.

Reasons?

Some of my favorites from the New York Times article by Robert Pear:

The Childbearing Excuse.....

Insurers say they have a sound reason for charging different premiums: Women ages 19 to 55 tend to cost more than men because they typically use more health care, especially in the childbearing years.....

Representative Xavier Becerra, Democrat of California, said that “if men could have kids,” such disparities would probably not exist.

Man....I always thought both my mom and dad were my parents, but apparently men don't have kids.

Women are more health conscious...

Elizabeth J. Leif, a health insurance actuary in Denver who helps calculate rates for Nebraska and other states, said: “Under the age of 55, women tend to be higher utilizers of health care than men. I am more conscious of my health than my husband, who will avoid going to the doctor at all costs.”

So now women are being punished for taking care of themselves, staying healthy, and practicing preventative medicine? And men are rewarded for not going to the doctor "at all costs"?! Using this logic, men would cost insurance companies more money in the long run.