Women and health care coverage: the importance of continuity

An article from The American Prospect from a few days ago addressed the inequities in continuous health care coverage for women. Since women have fewer opportunities for employer-provided health insurance, straight women often depend on their partner’s health insurance to cover them. This makes women much more vulnerable to losing their health insurance due to relationship or family issues that disrupt the relationship that provides them coverage. Dana Goldstein makes the case in this article that “[women who experienced health disruptions] had a greater probability of experiencing a change in usual clinic/provider (71 percent), delaying filling or taking fewer medications than prescribed because of the cost (75 percent), going to the emergency room (52 percent), and had lower average mental health scores than women who did not experience an insurance disruption.”

This highlights the importance of providing women with health insurance that they choose, on their terms, and controlled by them. Women need self-determinations in all areas of life, and health insurance is an important piece of the puzzle.

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