Faced with the prospect of having to compete on a major scale with Obama administration-era government plans, insurance companies are offering to cut higher premiums for certain highly utilized patient demographics, like women in their childbearing years. As Obama’s push for more government intervention in healthcare purchasing becomes more salient, Big Insurance appears to have changed its tone a little.

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.

But, the industry concessions aren’t enough for many Democrats, who see the public plan as already a compromise because their real preference is for a “single-payer” plan – an entirely government-run program like some European countries have.

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