2025 Winter Think Tank

Women’s Health & Well-Being: Employers’ Role in Building Awareness and Equity 

Despite longer life expectancies, women spend an average of 9 more years in a suboptimal state of physical, social, and psychological well-being relative to men, reducing quality of life, earning potential, and their capacity to actively take part in and contribute to their home, workforce, or community.^1,2 Often what comes to mind initially at the mention of ‘women’s health’ is fertility treatments, reproductive care, and support for menopause, which in and of itself can last 10+ years.³  While those topics are essential, they are not by any means the whole story. Among all of the conditions contributing to the global burden of disease, 47% disproportionately affect women (e.g., women are 2x as likely to experience symptoms of depression²), 4% percent affect them differently, and an additional 5% are exclusive to women.¹  Women do a disproportionate share of unpaid work (e.g., housework, childcare, other caregiving)⁴ – even in dual income homes³ – a persistent inequity that exposes them to higher risk for poor mental health.⁴ Furthermore, the gender pay gap – the difference between the earnings of men and women – has barely budged in the United States in the past two decades. In 2022, American women typically earned 82 cents for every dollar earned by men.³ The wage gap is exacerbated by the fact that woman pay, on average, nearly 20% more than men in out-of-pocket medical expenses, which translates to about $15 billion more in annual expenses.⁵ There are notable differences in the actuarial value of employer-sponsored coverage, which is $1.34 billion higher for men in the U.S. than for women – even after maternity claims are excluded.⁵  Women are more likely than men to outlive their retirement savings,⁶ which may stem partially from what some have noted is less confidence and/or risk tolerance in investment strategies.⁶

Health and financial disparities are not the only barriers women face. In the workforce, they encounter what has been referred to as a “broken rung” in career advancement.²  In 2023, women represented 41.9% of the workforce, but only 32.2% of women were in senior leadership positions. Men outnumber women in these roles across industry types.⁷ That is likely due in part to glaring gender inequities in early promotions: Only 87 women are promoted from entry-level roles to managerial positions for every 100 men.²

These persistent and pervasive disparities are gaining increasing attention, and calls to close the gaps are coming from multiple camps.^8,9 McKinsey Health Institute reported that closing gaps in women’s health represents an opportunity to improve health, extend lives, and boost the economy by a trillion dollars.² And it is increasingly clear that employers can play a substantial role in promoting a more equitable and healthy future by supporting women’s physical, financial, emotional, and career well-being.^8,10,11 Beyond the payoff of improved population health, they stand to gain through higher productivity, reduced absenteeism, and improved hiring and retention of female employees.^10,12

In fact, employers are uniquely positioned to be change agents in advancing women’s health. This Think Tank will explore some of the potential evidence-based strategies that could be leveraged, such as:

• Reviewing and revising business policies to support women^2,11
• Committing to collecting and analyzing sex- and gender-disaggregated data² and demographics (e.g., age) to inform investments in high-impact areas⁸
• Conducting a thorough review of benefit design coverage to examine impact on people of different gender identities^5,10 & improve coverage¹⁰
• Promoting health equity by closing the benefit gap⁵
• Enhancing access to gender-specific care along the continuum of prevention to diagnosis and treatment^2,8,11
• Increasing access to evidence-based digital health tools¹³
• Improving access to reproductive care and benefits (prenatal support, maternal care, fertility benefits)³ and supporting women through menopause^3,8
• Offering training for managers and supervisors on how to create a culture in which women’s health can be discussed and destigmatized¹³
• Ensuring pay equity³ and advancement opportunities that enable women to be promoted on par with male colleagues^2,3
• Offering and clearly outlining the advantages of financial well-being benefits
• Co-creating a work environment that supports women¹⁰
• Exploring the potential for mentoring, sponsorship, leadership training, and specific policies for increased flexibility^3,7 of working arrangements as mechanisms for narrowing workforce gender gaps
• Implementing caregiver benefits^3,13
• Considering paid parental leave¹⁰

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify at least three compelling reasons (i.e., the business case) for addressing persistent disparities in women’s health and well-being.
2. List three examples of business policies and practices that could be revised or reimagined to advance equity for women.
3. Describe at least one innovative solution an employer has implemented to improve access to gender-specific health care and/or financial well-being programs.

Citations

1. Committee on a Framework for the Consideration of Chronic Debilitating Conditions in Women, Board of Population Health and Public Health Practice, Health and Medicine Division, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Advancing Research on Chronic Conditions in Women. (Higginbotham EJ, Bhimla A, Batulan Z, eds.). National Academies Press; 2024:27757. doi:10.17226/27757
2. Ellingrud K, Perez L, Peterson A, Sartori V. Closing the Women’s Health Gap: A $1 Trillion Opportunity to Improve Lives and Economies. McKinsey Health Institute; 2024. Accessed November 14, 2024. https://www.mckinsey.com/mhi/our-insights/closing-the-womens-health-gap-a-1-trillion-dollar-opportunity-to-improve-lives-and-economies
3. Cannella EM, Mueller S, Levin-Scherz J, Toro P. Women’s health: How employers can prioritize wellbeing in the workplace. HR.com. Published online August 28, 2024. Accessed November 12, 2024. https://www.hr.com/en/magazines/all_articles/women%E2%80%99s-health-how-employers-can-prioritize-well-b_m0dpudau.html
4. Ervin J, Tauuk Y, Alfonzo L, Hewitt B, King T. Gender differences in the association between unpaid labour and mental health in employed adults: a systematic review. Lancet Public Health. 2022;7:e775-786.
5. Deloitte. Hiding in Plain Sight: The Health Care Gender Toll.; 2023. Accessed November 18, 2024. https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/life-sciences-health-care/us-lshc-health-gender-gap.pdf
6. Wood J. Retirees Will Outlive Their Savings by a Decade. World Economic Forum; 2019. Accessed November 18, 2024. https://www.weforum.org/stories/2019/06/retirees-will-outlive-their-savings-by-a-decade/
7. World Economic Forum. Global Gender Gap Report 2023.; 2023. Accessed November 16, 2024. https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-gender-gap-report-2023/in-full/gender-gaps-in-the-workforce/
8. CVS Health. New study shows employers’ support of women’s health is on the rise. News. October 16, 2024. Accessed November 18, 2024. https://www.cvshealth.com/news/womens-health-care/new-study-shows-employers-support-of-womens-health-is-on-the-rise.html
9. Health Action Alliance. Women’s Heatlh at Work. 2024. https://www.healthaction.org/womenshealth
10. Moniz M, Howard R, Englesbe M. How U.S. Employers Can Support Women’s Health. Harv Bus Rev. Published online June 2, 2022. Accessed November 18, 2024. https://hbr.org/2022/06/how-u-s-employers-can-support-womens-health
11. Anevski P. The U.S. Health Care System Fails Women. Employers Need to Step In. Time. Published online August 2, 2024. Accessed November 18, 2024. https://time.com/collection-post/7006619/employers-support-womens-health/
12. Innovative Benefit Design for Women’s Health.; 2024.
13. Schubert K. Employer Support for Women’s Health Will Advance Equity in the Health of Women. Society for Women’s Health Research. November 27, 2023. Accessed November 18, 2024. https://swhr.org/employer-support-for-womens-health-will-advance-equity-in-the-health-of-women/