Women are major consumers of health care services, negotiating not only their own complex health care but often managing care for their family members as well. Their reproductive health needs as well as their greater rates of health problems and longer life spans compared with men make women’s relationships with the health care system complex. Women are also more likely to be low-income and often face the added challenge of balancing work with family health and caregiving responsibilities. For the one in five women who are uninsured, access to high quality, comprehensive care is even more difficult.
Women have a vested interest in the scope and type of services offered by the health care system, as well as in the mechanisms that fund their health care services. Because their access to care is influenced by a broad range of factors, analysis of women’s health policy cuts across many sectors of the health care financing and delivery system, including reproductive health policy, reforms to publicly-financed health programs, as well as private sector efforts to contain costs and improve health. Women comprise the majority of beneficiaries in publicly –funded programs such as Medicaid, Medicare, and welfare, making them key stakeholders in public policy debates about the impact of reforms to these programs. Because of their lower incomes, affordability and cost of care are critical issues for women.
The Foundation aims to provide policymakers, journalists, advocates, and public health practitioners with current analysis on the policies in health financing and delivery that affect women. The particular challenges faced by women at risk for experiencing access barriers, such as those on Medicaid, those who are uninsured, and racial and ethnic minorities, are a special focus. Primary activities include conducting periodic surveys on women's interactions with the health care system, monitoring reforms under consideration in Washington and state capitols across the country, conducting research to document the impact of policies and to identify emerging priority areas for women, as well as briefing policymakers and their staff on key trends and issues to inform current policy debates.