Women's Healthcare Disparities and Discrimination

Civil Rights Journal, Fall, 1999 by Alyson Reed

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the population of women without any health care coverage continues to grow. Despite all the efforts of women's health advocates to increase access to care, to improve the quality of services, to expand the field of women's health research, and to move more women into positions of power within the health care industry, this central disparity--between the haves and the have nots--still persists, and gets worse every day, even though our economy is thriving.

Recommendations

How do we begin to address the fundamental issues of discrimination and disparities in the field of women's health? The IOM report concludes that we must eliminate the "women's health ghetto," wherein women access the health care system primarily to seek care for their reproductive systems: "The segmented nature of women's health services has interfered with our ability to envision health care across the life span for women." But even if we succeed in developing a more holistic view of women's health, we will not have addressed the more basic issue for women: access and quality: "Spurred by women's unique psychological needs and often complicated by their particular social and economic situation, the challenge of navigating the costly and uncoordinated care system will grow no easier until thoroughgoing reform puts adequate health care within the reach of all Americans of both genders." For those concerned with civil rights, it is time to demand that access to health care be established as a basic human right for all people living in the U.S., regardless of their ability to pay.

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The USCCR has released a report assessing the status of health care in the United States with regard to people of color and women, The Health Care Challenge: Acknowledging Disparity, Confronting Discrimination, and Ensuring Equality. Volume I of the report highlights the disparities in access to services and subsequent differences in health status of racial and ethnic minorities and women, and examines efforts by Federal, State, and local government and private agencies to redress these problems. Volume II examines Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights enforcement efforts with regard to Title VI of Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other civil rights statutes. Both volumes are available from the Office of Publications, USCCR, 624 Ninth Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20425. Tel: (202) 376-8128.

Alyson Reed is a Policy Analyst for the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM), where she focuses primarily on State policy issues affecting certified nurse-midwives and the women for whom they provide care. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of the ACNM.