womens-health

send to a friend printable version What that car really costs to own Knowing a vehicle's cost over time can save you thousands in the long haul Illustration of a car blowing money out the exhaust Illustration by Carlo Stanga A less-expensive car can cost you more in the long run than a more-expensive alternative, our new ownership-costs comparisons have found. At about $17,500, a Mitsubishi Lancer could cost $4,000 less than a base Mini Cooper to drive home. But when you estimate the total costs of ownership for each car, the Lancer could cost you $5,000 more over five years. A Toyota Highlander can cost you $3,000 more to purchase than a Ford Explorer V6, but owning the Ford after five years can cost $6,750 more. In addition to shopping for a good deal, car buyers should also consider how much a model will cost them to own. That includes depreciation, fuel costs, interest, insurance, sales tax, and maintenance and repair costs. To help, Consumer Reports is introducing its new owner-costs estimates, which can help you compare models and could save you thousands of dollars. The "owner costs" Ratings cover one, three, five, and eight years of ownership and are based on a comparison of all models within the Consumer Reports database over eight years. Because depreciation is factored in our estimates, we assume that the vehicle will be traded in at the end of the term.

Top Five Car Care Do's That Don't Get Done Car Care Month AAA Gives Tips on How to Prevent Costly Breakdowns Media Contact: Jennifer Mack San Francisco, October 11, 2007 An oil change or tire rotation is one more chore on your never-ending to-do list that never takes priority and seldom gets done. AAA of Northern California points out that October Car Care Month is a great time to take care of routine auto maintenance before winter sets in, and to prevent budget-busting repair bills later. "Not only will better vehicle maintenance improve fuel economy, in many cases it also will prevent expensive, unforeseen repair bills," said AAA of Northern California automotive expert Mark Woods. "Your savings account isn't the only thing you'll protect by paying attention to your vehicle. A car that is in top working condition is much safer for you and your passengers."

AAA Estimates Drivers Pay Almost $8,100 per Year Media Contact: Jennifer Mack San Francisco, April 08, 2009 New research from AAA finds that the average annual cost of owning and operating a new car has remained fairly steady over the past year, despite lower fuel costs. The 2009 edition of AAA's annual "Your Driving Costs" study estimates the overall cost of owning and operating a typical new sedan at 54 cents per mile, just a tenth of a cent less than in 2008. For a car driven 15,000 miles a year, that amounts to $8,095 annually. That's $26 less than last year's estimated cost of $8,121.

Earning less, paying more for health care: fighting a battle on two fronts By Hygeia | Tuesday, April 28th, 2009 Today, April 28th, is Blog for Fair Pay Day. In recognition of this important day, our guest post by Lisa Codispoti, Senior Counsel for Health and Reproductive Rights, National Women's Law Center, relates to health care and equal pay. Between 2000 and 2006, health insurance premiums increased 87.5 percent-4 times more than wages. In addition to the burden of inflated health care costs, women are still paid only 78 cents for every dollar earned by men-with women of color earning even less. In a world where women are earning significantly less than men for comparable work, how can they also afford health care? Pay inequity for women compounds the issues that already exist with our broken health care system. This is a system that makes unfair practices by insurance companies flourish, such as allowing health to be more expensive for women. For example, women pay higher premiums than men when they try to buy health insurance directly from an insurance company through the individual health insurance market (a practice known as gender rating.) Even worse is that many of these health plans do not cover maternity care or expect women to pay an additional fee (what is called a rider) to gain maternity coverage. Women are then left trying to stretch their already smaller paycheck for a much larger health care bill. (more…)

Gender can cost you in individual health insurance June 22, 2008 When it comes to health insurance, Valencia resident Tova Hack's first problem is that she works part time and thus needs an individual policy for medical coverage because her employer doesn't offer one. Her second problem is that she's a woman. Ads by Google / Ad Feedback * Blue Cross Blue ShieldHealth insurance plans as low as $4/day. Call 1-8... FREE! www.Vimo.com * Individual BlueSave Big on Health Insurance Rates- Get Affordable Brand Name Care Now! www.YourFreeQuotes.com * Nevada Health PlansFree health insurance quotes! Find the right plan and apply online. www.GoHealthInsurance.com * Blue Cross Short Term InsHealth Insurance Quotes Online from Blue Cross. Plans from $50 month. www.healthinsurancesort.com Hack, 22, a grad student at Cal State Northridge, is insured by Blue Shield of California. She just found out that the cost of her bare-bones, high-deductible insurance plan is going up 20%, to $119 a month from $99. But the real surprise -- which Blue Shield neglected to point out in its recent letters to individual policyholders but which was apparent from a close reading of an accompanying chart -- is that men and women will now be charged different rates. The change takes effect July 1. "I don't think it's fair at all," said Hack. "I'm in perfectly fine health." That may be. But as far as Blue Shield is concerned, Hack and all other women are somehow more accident-prone, or more likely to break a bone, or more susceptible to costly ailments. Why? Because they're women. "Our egghead actuaries crunched the numbers based on all the data we have about healthcare," explained Tom Epstein, a Blue Shield spokesman. "This is what they found." That women get sicker than men? "It's all about the statistics," Epstein said. It's not about pregnancy, though. Hack's policy doesn't even cover pregnancy and maternity care. No, this is purely a matter of Blue Shield deciding t

Gender can cost you in individual health insurance June 22, 2008 When it comes to health insurance, Valencia resident Tova Hack's first problem is that she works part time and thus needs an individual policy for medical coverage because her employer doesn't offer one. Her second problem is that she's a woman. Ads by Google / Ad Feedback * Blue Cross Blue ShieldHealth insurance plans as low as $4/day. Call 1-8... FREE! www.Vimo.com * Individual BlueSave Big on Health Insurance Rates- Get Affordable Brand Name Care Now! www.YourFreeQuotes.com * Nevada Health PlansFree health insurance quotes! Find the right plan and apply online. www.GoHealthInsurance.com * Blue Cross Short Term InsHealth Insurance Quotes Online from Blue Cross. Plans from $50 month. www.healthinsurancesort.com Hack, 22, a grad student at Cal State Northridge, is insured by Blue Shield of California. She just found out that the cost of her bare-bones, high-deductible insurance plan is going up 20%, to $119 a month from $99. But the real surprise -- which Blue Shield neglected to point out in its recent letters to individual policyholders but which was apparent from a close reading of an accompanying chart -- is that men and women will now be charged different rates. The change takes effect July 1. "I don't think it's fair at all," said Hack. "I'm in perfectly fine health." That may be. But as far as Blue Shield is concerned, Hack and all other women are somehow more accident-prone, or more likely to break a bone, or more susceptible to costly ailments. Why? Because they're women. "Our egghead actuaries crunched the numbers based on all the data we have about healthcare," explained Tom Epstein, a Blue Shield spokesman. "This is what they found." That women get sicker than men? "It's all about the statistics," Epstein said. It's not about pregnancy, though. Hack's policy doesn't even cover pregnancy and maternity care. No, this is purely a matter of Blue Shield deciding t

Women Pay The Price For Health Insurance by Sarah Varney April 2, 2009 Listen to the Story Morning Edition [4 min 40 sec] * Add to Playlist * Download * Transcript In Depth Search For Health Insurance Learn About COBRA Read About A Government Subsidy For COBRA A State-By-State Guide to Health Insurance text sizeAAA April 2, 2009 During the last economic bust, I got laid off and couldn't afford the monthly COBRA payments for my health insurance. I applied for an individual plan through Blue Cross. I was 28 at the time and had no health problems. I was thin and athletic. In fact, I'd done a triathlon and biked from San Francisco to Los Angeles twice. I got a letter from Blue Cross saying I was denied. They told me it was because my medical records showed I'd gone to the doctor complaining of stomach pain. The pain had long since gone away, but Blue Cross said if I wanted insurance, my doctor would need to fax a note guaranteeing I didn't have stomach cancer. He faxed the letter, and eventually I got a plan. It makes you wonder, though, if Blue Cross didn't want to insure me - a healthy 20-something - how on earth do actuaries determine who's a good risk and who's not? "It's very scientific and fact-based," says Jeff Fluke a senior underwriter with the risk management company Ingenix in Minneapolis. Fluke says actuaries first calculate average health costs over a broad population like 28-year-old women or 50-year-old men. Then the underwriter adjusts those averages based on your medical history and health status - your height and weight, and whether you have high blood pressure, asthma or hay fever. "Maybe there's a heart condition," Fluke says. "How long ago was it? What were the treatments? Are you on treatment now? What are the medications you're taking? Because some medications [are] expensive and some aren't." Complex Calculations These complex algorithms boil down to: Will you cost the insurance company more money than the insurer c

Women Pay The Price For Health Insurance by Sarah Varney April 2, 2009 Listen to the Story Morning Edition [4 min 40 sec] * Add to Playlist * Download * Transcript In Depth Search For Health Insurance Learn About COBRA Read About A Government Subsidy For COBRA A State-By-State Guide to Health Insurance text sizeAAA April 2, 2009 During the last economic bust, I got laid off and couldn't afford the monthly COBRA payments for my health insurance. I applied for an individual plan through Blue Cross. I was 28 at the time and had no health problems. I was thin and athletic. In fact, I'd done a triathlon and biked from San Francisco to Los Angeles twice. I got a letter from Blue Cross saying I was denied. They told me it was because my medical records showed I'd gone to the doctor complaining of stomach pain. The pain had long since gone away, but Blue Cross said if I wanted insurance, my doctor would need to fax a note guaranteeing I didn't have stomach cancer. He faxed the letter, and eventually I got a plan. It makes you wonder, though, if Blue Cross didn't want to insure me - a healthy 20-something - how on earth do actuaries determine who's a good risk and who's not? "It's very scientific and fact-based," says Jeff Fluke a senior underwriter with the risk management company Ingenix in Minneapolis. Fluke says actuaries first calculate average health costs over a broad population like 28-year-old women or 50-year-old men. Then the underwriter adjusts those averages based on your medical history and health status - your height and weight, and whether you have high blood pressure, asthma or hay fever. "Maybe there's a heart condition," Fluke says. "How long ago was it? What were the treatments? Are you on treatment now? What are the medications you're taking? Because some medications [are] expensive and some aren't." Complex Calculations These complex algorithms boil down to: Will you cost the insurance company more money than the insurer c

women's health care versus health care for men

Report: Cost of Health Care Affects Women More than Men Women are more likely than men to see cost as a barrier to accessing health care services, including filling prescriptions, seeing a doctor and getting medical tests, according to a study conducted by a health-care research group.