Danielle Garrett, Health Policy Analyst

Steph already told you about some of the informational and inspiring speeches at this year’s Health Action conference sponsored by Families USA. I was thrilled to spend 3 days with so many enthusiastic and hardworking health care activists, but I was particularly happy I made it to Friday morning’s panel on health disparities. The panel was informative and engaging, but also quite alarming. It was there that I learned that the direct and indirect costs of health disparities in the U.S. come to $1.24 trillion over 3 years.

Census data shows that there are striking racial disparities in women’s access to health coverage. Hispanic women are uninsured at a rate nearly 3 times higher than white women while Black and American Indian women are uninsured at a rate nearly twice that of White women. Our women’s health report card shows more alarming disparities in women’s health status. Black women in the US are significantly more likely to die from stroke and heart disease than white women and the AIDS rate among black women is over 22 times higher than for White women. Additionally, Hispanic women suffer from diabetes and high blood pressure more often than White women.

Along with checking Facebook and reading the Huffington Post while I drink my coffee in the mornings, I also peruse the Federal Register. Now I’m sure you don’t think this is thrilling reading, and I’m sure I wouldn’t either if I didn’t have to do it for my job, but there is actually a lot of important stuff in there! Right now, federal agencies are deciding how the new health care law should be implemented and they are issuing rules and guidance that can have an enormous impact on women’s access to affordable health care. For example, comments were due on October 31st on proposed rules regarding the operation of the new health insurance exchanges, the advanced premium tax credits, and the Medicaid expansion.

While this set of proposed rules has important implications for all health care consumers, we believe women in particular have much at stake in the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. In 2014, over 7 million currently uninsured women will be eligible for premium tax credits and over 10 million will be newly eligible for Medicaid. Women comprise a disproportionate share of health care consumers, often managing multiple chronic conditions and paying more out-of-pocket costs, causing their health care to be prohibitively expensive and frequently unaffordable. In 2008, one in four women reported going without needed health care because they could not afford it. A system that provides easy access to affordable coverage is crucial for women.