wtf?

forgive the political post, but wtf? maybe we should also forbid car companies from charging more for cars that last longer or force salons to charge the same price for a man's haircut as a woman's wash, cut, and dye... anyway, men end up paying more towards the end of their lives. of course, i defer to my actuary-type cobloggers (pronounced kuh-bloggers, not koe-bloggers).

Health Insurers Agree to End Higher Premiums for Women
By ROBERT PEAR (The New York Times)
Published: May 6, 2009
WASHINGTON — Insurance companies offered Tuesday to end the practice of charging higher premiums to women than to men for the same coverage.
Karen M. Ignagni, president of America's Health Insurance Plans, a trade group, made the offer in testifying before the Senate Finance Committee.
It was the latest concession by insurers as Congress drafts legislation to overhaul the $2.5 trillion health care industry.
In November, insurers said they would accept all customers, regardless of illness or disability, if Congress required all Americans to have coverage. In March, insurers offered to stop charging higher premiums to sick people.
Ms. Ignagni said the industry would accept aggressive federal regulation, but would resist creation of a government-run insurance program of the type proposed by President Obama and many Democrats in Congress. The government-sponsored program would compete with private insurers.
Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, told Ms. Ignagni, "The disparity between women and men in the individual insurance market is just plain wrong, and it has to change."
She said she agreed the disparities "should be eliminated."
Mr. Kerry introduced a bill on Tuesday to prohibit insurers from considering sex as a factor in setting premiums for policies in the individual insurance market.
Women are often charged 25 percent to 50 percent more than men for insurance providing identical coverage.
In interviews last fall, insurance executives said they had a sound reason for the different premiums: Women ages 19 to 55 tend to cost more than men of the same age because they typically use more health care, especially in the childbearing years. Moreover, insurers said women were more likely to visit doctors, to get regular checkups, to take prescription medications and to have certain chronic illnesses.
Congress is considering proposals to provide tax credits or subsidies to millions of people with low or moderate incomes to help them buy insurance. Without substantial changes in the insurance market, such assistance would be worth less to women because of the higher premiums.

Friday Night Social

So Grebutron and I were hard at work this friday making burgers for the sailing Friday Night Social. It took me back to my PH days because I was covered in grease at the end of the shift and stuck working with retards.

Seriously, that kid was a spaz... not Grebutron, some kid called Daniel or something. He was probably under 5 foot and super energetic. At one point, I was hulking a huge container of iced tea and he came up to me, didn't say a thing, and just grabbed it out of my hands. Of course without sweet guns like mine, he immediately put the iced tea down. He reminded me of a dumber version of one of those little yippy dogs that you have to kick because they're always under your feet.

Had Grebutron and I not been busy co-piloting the grill, I probably would have more tempted to kick him into the drink.

For Grebutron

What did you think of that girl that went out with us Tuesday night? I think we should set her up with Kenny. I'm pretty sure she was one of the more annoying persons I've run into recently. I think every sentence started with "Back East..." or "When I was sailing [insert ship name here]..." and yet for all her alleged experience, she seemed clueless. I desperately wanted to "accidentally" bump her overboard.

Uhm, also... it's not too late to join Kenny and Watson on Spray (tonight, 5:40-8:40)

1. Nathan Wernerehl

2. Valerie Freedman

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