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The Business of
Health Care Report
It's well documented that women make about 80 percent of all health
care decisions: for their children, their spouses and often for their parents and in-laws. But when it comes to putting
their own health at the forefront, women aren't so conscientious. In fact, they often put themselves last in protecting
their health. These same feelings were echoed in the 1999 Reality Check survey
conducted in North Texas by Texas Health Resources. Women had some very strong things to say about health care and
how the industry can make it easier for them to access care with their busy schedules. A recently released study from the Kaiser Family Foundation reveals
that money - or the lack of it - prevents more women than men from getting medical help. Of the 4,000 women surveyed,
24 percent said they delayed or omitted medical care because they couldn't afford it, compared to 16 percent of men in
the same predicament. Twenty-one percent of women said they don't get prescriptions filled because of cost, as opposed
to 13 percent of men. The study further cites reasons for the gap. First, women usually
have less money than men, even though their medical needs are more complex. Women control how health care dollars are
spent and put themselves last, even at great peril. The study cites several recommendations to reverse this trend. First
is expanding access to needy patients so they can receive drug discounts, since drugs can manage more problematic health
conditions before they become a crisis. The second is providing expanded community centers for low-cost or free health care.
And the third is offering subsidized services including pregnancy education, pregnancy prevention, and breast and ovarian
cancer detections. Community databases of health services should be established and publicized, the study says. To learn about pharmaceutical manufacturers' drug assistance programs,
log on to NeedyMeds.com. For Texas Health Resources
and its family of hospitals - Harris Methodist Hospitals, Presbyterian
Healthcare System and Arlington Memorial Hospital - I'm CEO Doug
Hawthorne with "The Business of Health Care Report" on NewsRadio
1080 KRLD.
©
2002 Texas Health Resources |
I'm Doug Hawthorne, President and CEO of Texas Health Resources, with
"The Business of Health Care Report" on 