Women’sHealthCare and Preventative Care In the United States, the cost of health care is on the rise and it is almost impossible to receive any health care service at an affordable rate. Whether insured or uninsured, women of all demographics are faced with this problem. Women should not put their health or life at risk because they fear receiving another medical bill. Due to the rising cost of health care and insurance, more women do not receive preventative medical treatment and are currently in debt.
Often, women do not receive or delay receiving preventative health care due to the cost of treatment. “ Learning about and practicing preventive healthcare, i. e. maintaining your body and good health throughout your entire lifetime, is properly the best method to prevent disease from happening in the first place” (World Research Foundation, n. d. ). Women require more preventative health care than men and some of these preventative services are not always fully covered by insurance such as mammograms or prenatal care.
Prenatal care is not only important for the woman’s health, but also for the child’s health. Preventative health care can detect as well as prevent diseases. Early detection is sometimes the key to curing certain diseases. More women currently are in debt or have unpaid medical bills. The rising cost of health care combined with the current job market has left more women in debt (Robertson & Collins, 2011). Health insurance providers do not always provide the coverage women need.
In fact recent studies have shown “ few plans offer maternity coverage and young women can face substantially higher premiums than men of the same age” (Robertson & Collins, 2011). Although,” The Affordable Care Act is bringing change for women through required free coverage of preventive care services, small business tax credits, new affordable coverage options, and insurance market reforms, including bans on gender rating” the law will not be implemented until 2014 (Robertson & Collins, 2011).
Something needs to be done before then in order to cut down on debt from unpaid medical bills. The federal as well as the state government should implement more programs that offer preventative care at income based rates. There should also be more programs directed at lowering medical bill debt. A debt acquired by a medical bill should not affect a person’s credit. More insurance companies should provide age and gender specific plans at affordable rates, in order to ensure everyone receives the proper healthcare needed.
Although, some of these solutions may have to be funded with higher taxes or budget cuts, these programs would definitely have a large impact on the amount of women who receive preventative care. Preventative care is a necessity in ensuring healthy living for women. Receiving preventative care is a cost effective way to save lives by treating and diagnosing diseases and conditions early. Insured and uninsured women should be able to receive preventative care without worrying about how and if they will pay the medical bill.
Although women’s health care cost is a rising issue in the U. S, there are cost effective solutions to alleviate this problem. References Robertson, R. , & Collins, S. R. (2011) Realizing Health Reforms Potential. Retrieved fromhttp://www. commonwealthfund. org/~/media/Files/Publications/Issue%20Brief/2011/May /1502_Robertson_women_at_risk_reform_brief_v3. pdf World Research Foundation. (n. d. ) Preventive Health Care Helps Everyone. Sedona, AZ: WorldResearch Foundation. Retrieved July 15, 2012 from http://www. wrf. org/preventive-healthcare/preventive-healthcare. php
