6 ms·

So I should pay more for being 6’7”? Should your health insurance cost more since a number of chronic conditions are more likely to affect shorter people?

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
Yizahi 5y ago
Ideally corporations should charge depending on the condition, and on top of that pro-social government should determine which charges are discrimination and which are not, and then compensate discriminating charge difference from the budget. This makes the system transparent and it prevents real incurred costs spilling into unintended areas. E.g. plane won't fly if it is loaded with fuel amount assuming all passengers are slender. Extra fuel is loaded and burned, but currently costs are spread out to other services of the airline. Instead they should be visible and managed specifically I think.
kortilla 5y ago
Yes because you cost more and flying is not an entitlement we guarantee everyone access to.
- EForEndeavour 5y ago
  This attitude simply makes charging/not charging based on height or weight a factor on which airlines can compete for passengers.
danielrpa 5y ago
Should someone heavier (including being heavier due to being taller) pay more in gas/electricity for their car? We have been doing it all along...
542354234235 5y ago
Yes, you should. You’re paying a business to move you and your stuff. It is not unreasonable for the business to charge based on the size and weight of what it is moving. Would it be unfair for a clothing company to charge based on the amount of material used to make a garment, since you would pay more than a smaller person? Or a restaurant to change based on the amount of food you eat, since you require more calories than a smaller person? You’re basically asking to be charged based on your subjective experience, not on the actual cost of the goods and services. Or more accurately, you’re asking for other people to pay for extra goods and services they aren’t using so you can have them for free.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- aplummer 5y ago
  > You’re basically asking to be charged based on your subjective experience, not on the actual cost of the goods and services. Or more accurately, you’re asking for other people to pay for extra goods and services they aren’t using so you can have them for free. Neither of those points are true, and you didn't address my question as to whether you're happy to pay more for health insurance, since it costs the insurer more.
  - 542354234235 5y ago
    I didn’t address it initially because it is clearly a ridiculous strawman argument to attempt to equate legally required and life save medical insurance to airline travel. But it is really going to make you mad when you find out that health insurance already sets premiums based on height. “Height by itself may also dictate your insurance rates to a small degree. That's because above or below-average heights can be linked to an increase in the risk of certain health conditions.” [1] >Neither of those points are true Well, they are, so I‘ll lay it out. Aplummer and James are on a two-person plane flying to Whereverville. James and his luggage weigh 150 lbs, Aplummer and his luggage weigh 300 lbs. It takes 50 gallons of fuel to transport the total 450 lbs. At $2.50 per gallon, the total is $125. So ”the actual cost of the goods and services” is 16.6 gallons ($41.66) for James, and 33.3 gallons ($83.33) for Aplummer. But Aplummer doesn’t want to pay $83.33. He says “So I should pay more for being 6’7”?” and says him and James should both pay $62.50, leaving James “to pay for extra goods and services they aren’t using so [he] can have them for free”. [1] https://quotewizard.com/health-insurance/health-insurance-rate-factors https://quotewizard.com/health-insurance/health-insurance-ra...
    - aplummer 5y ago
      > ridiculous strawman argument to attempt to equate legally required and life save medical insurance to airline travel Untrue. > Well, they are, so I‘ll lay it out. That cost calculation is completely ridiculous without taking into account the capacity of the plane, overhead, seat class, disability status, ticket type, volume of luggage and a million other things. Which is why tickets are broken down to "ordinary adult" and "ordinary child".
bagacrap 5y ago
at 6'3" I find myself at the limit of what a standard bilge class airline seat has room for. I'd imagine that at 6'7" you really need that business class or a bulkhead or exit row. So don't you already pay more?
randyrand 5y ago
Should a petite passenger have pay more because they commonly go on flights with heavier passengers? Someone has to pay. There’s no free lunch. Why make the lighter people pay for the heavier people?
- rsj_hn 5y ago
  Because people generally don't like being nickel and dimed. Why should someone with 20 pounds of luggage pay the same amount as someone with 50 pounds of luggage? Why not charge per pound for the luggage? And the luggage is even weighed, whereas scales would need to be added to weigh passengers. And then let's talk about carry on bags, why are those free and why aren't they weighed? There are huge differences in carry on bag weight between passengers. Yet airlines don't charge per pound, they have cut offs which are pretty generous (e.g I've never been charged for extra weight on checkin luggage) and they don't even bother weighing carry on bags. Because as much as airlines will nickle and dime you, there are limits to all the little surcharges that people are willing to pay and to the complexity/inconvenience of the checkin process. But when it gets to bodyweight you have even more hurdles. Someone is in a wheelchair, should that be weighed? Well, no they have a disability. So if an obese passenger claims it's a medical condition, they will likely complain about discrimination. Yet carry on bags and checkin luggage can be weighed right now with little complaints about violating ADA. But airlines aren't willing to do even that.

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

Yizahi 5y ago

Ideally corporations should charge depending on the condition, and on top of that pro-social government should determine which charges are discrimination and which are not, and then compensate discriminating charge difference from the budget. This makes the system transparent and it prevents real incurred costs spilling into unintended areas. E.g. plane won't fly if it is loaded with fuel amount assuming all passengers are slender. Extra fuel is loaded and burned, but currently costs are spread out to other services of the airline. Instead they should be visible and managed specifically I think.

kortilla 5y ago

Yes because you cost more and flying is not an entitlement we guarantee everyone access to.

EForEndeavour 5y ago
This attitude simply makes charging/not charging based on height or weight a factor on which airlines can compete for passengers.

danielrpa 5y ago

Should someone heavier (including being heavier due to being taller) pay more in gas/electricity for their car? We have been doing it all along...

542354234235 5y ago

Yes, you should. You’re paying a business to move you and your stuff. It is not unreasonable for the business to charge based on the size and weight of what it is moving. Would it be unfair for a clothing company to charge based on the amount of material used to make a garment, since you would pay more than a smaller person? Or a restaurant to change based on the amount of food you eat, since you require more calories than a smaller person? You’re basically asking to be charged based on your subjective experience, not on the actual cost of the goods and services. Or more accurately, you’re asking for other people to pay for extra goods and services they aren’t using so you can have them for free.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
aplummer 5y ago
> You’re basically asking to be charged based on your subjective experience, not on the actual cost of the goods and services. Or more accurately, you’re asking for other people to pay for extra goods and services they aren’t using so you can have them for free. Neither of those points are true, and you didn't address my question as to whether you're happy to pay more for health insurance, since it costs the insurer more.
- 542354234235 5y ago
  I didn’t address it initially because it is clearly a ridiculous strawman argument to attempt to equate legally required and life save medical insurance to airline travel. But it is really going to make you mad when you find out that health insurance already sets premiums based on height. “Height by itself may also dictate your insurance rates to a small degree. That's because above or below-average heights can be linked to an increase in the risk of certain health conditions.” [1] >Neither of those points are true Well, they are, so I‘ll lay it out. Aplummer and James are on a two-person plane flying to Whereverville. James and his luggage weigh 150 lbs, Aplummer and his luggage weigh 300 lbs. It takes 50 gallons of fuel to transport the total 450 lbs. At $2.50 per gallon, the total is $125. So ”the actual cost of the goods and services” is 16.6 gallons ($41.66) for James, and 33.3 gallons ($83.33) for Aplummer. But Aplummer doesn’t want to pay $83.33. He says “So I should pay more for being 6’7”?” and says him and James should both pay $62.50, leaving James “to pay for extra goods and services they aren’t using so [he] can have them for free”. [1] https://quotewizard.com/health-insurance/health-insurance-rate-factors https://quotewizard.com/health-insurance/health-insurance-ra...
  - aplummer 5y ago
    > ridiculous strawman argument to attempt to equate legally required and life save medical insurance to airline travel Untrue. > Well, they are, so I‘ll lay it out. That cost calculation is completely ridiculous without taking into account the capacity of the plane, overhead, seat class, disability status, ticket type, volume of luggage and a million other things. Which is why tickets are broken down to "ordinary adult" and "ordinary child".

bagacrap 5y ago

at 6'3" I find myself at the limit of what a standard bilge class airline seat has room for. I'd imagine that at 6'7" you really need that business class or a bulkhead or exit row. So don't you already pay more?

randyrand 5y ago

Should a petite passenger have pay more because they commonly go on flights with heavier passengers? Someone has to pay. There’s no free lunch. Why make the lighter people pay for the heavier people?

rsj_hn 5y ago
Because people generally don't like being nickel and dimed. Why should someone with 20 pounds of luggage pay the same amount as someone with 50 pounds of luggage? Why not charge per pound for the luggage? And the luggage is even weighed, whereas scales would need to be added to weigh passengers. And then let's talk about carry on bags, why are those free and why aren't they weighed? There are huge differences in carry on bag weight between passengers. Yet airlines don't charge per pound, they have cut offs which are pretty generous (e.g I've never been charged for extra weight on checkin luggage) and they don't even bother weighing carry on bags. Because as much as airlines will nickle and dime you, there are limits to all the little surcharges that people are willing to pay and to the complexity/inconvenience of the checkin process. But when it gets to bodyweight you have even more hurdles. Someone is in a wheelchair, should that be weighed? Well, no they have a disability. So if an obese passenger claims it's a medical condition, they will likely complain about discrimination. Yet carry on bags and checkin luggage can be weighed right now with little complaints about violating ADA. But airlines aren't willing to do even that.