US women’s health falls short in international comparisons

August 27, 2024

The United States has devastatingly high maternal mortality rates. Here are two posts (1) (2) on this over the last year. The Commonwealth Fund recently published a white paper showing that the US problem with women’s health is not limited to maternal complications and mortality. US women have substantial health care disadvantages compared to women in other high-resource countries. Women receive more health care than men, and as a result are responsible for paying far more cost sharing. 

The researchers found that US women have the lowest life expectancy (80 years, compared to 82 to 87 in other comparable countries) and have by far the highest rate of avoidable deaths. The excess rate of death from cardiovascular disease is especially prominent. US women also have among the lowest rates of access to a regular provider or place of care and are most likely to say they skipped or delayed care because of medical cost.

Source: Gunja, MZ et al Commonwealth Fund, August 14, 2024 LINK

Implications for employers:

-        Employers can carefully design health plans so that women will not face unaffordable out of pocket costs. Many employers have begun offering low deductible plans, which can be especially valuable for those getting maternity care.

-        Coverage of birth doulas, midwives, and navigation and advocacy support can also improve birth outcomes.

-        Excess cardiovascular deaths can be limited by more effective diagnosis and treatment of high blood pressure, obesity and high cholesterol.

-        Decreasing cigarette smoking also lowers cardiovascular disease. Employers can continue to encourage cigarette cessation through education, workplace policies, and coverage of cessation programs.

Thanks for reading.  You can find previous posts in the Employer Coverage archive

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