The invisible cost of caregiving continues to pose a challenge for women and mothers.
Across America, women are making an impossible choice: prioritize their families’ needs or take care of their own health. With grocery bills climbing, healthcare costs rising and the pressure to juggle caregiving responsibilities growing, more and more women are opting to skip out on their own doctor’s appointments. The result? A looming health crisis among the very people holding households together.
“When costs aren’t a limiting factor, women can make more informed decisions about their health and feel more confident in their ability to get the care that they need and want,” Bethany Weeby, SVP, Strategic Initiatives and Strategy, Health and Wellness, Synchrony, told PYMNTS, noting that in the complex world of healthcare, financial challenges are often an overlooked barrier.
And this issue is magnified by the gender pay gap, where women still earn only 82% of what men make. One in four women (25%), for example, cite financial challenges as a significant hurdle in managing their health and well-being.
Weeby noted that life stage plays a crucial role in these disparities. For instance, 28% of mothers reported prioritizing their family members’ health over their own. On top of that, they spend about 26% less on healthcare than their partners. These numbers reflect the dual burden women face — not only are they often primary caregivers, but they also grapple with financial barriers, limiting their ability to seek necessary treatments.
“The combination of financial hurdles and caregiving and household responsibilities that women often take on really makes prioritizing their healthcare difficult,” she said.
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Addressing the financial barriers to healthcare is vital to improving health outcomes for women.
Weeby highlighted how financing options, such as CareCredit, offer solutions that reduce the burden of out-of-pocket healthcare costs. When cost is no longer the limiting factor, they are more likely to seek preventative care, which can ultimately lower long-term medical expenses. And by spreading payments over time, women are empowered to make better-informed decisions about their health.
This model of personalized financing, she added, helps alleviate the immediate financial pressure, giving women the confidence to access treatments that they might otherwise postpone or disregard.
Still, the healthcare landscape is far from perfect, particularly when it comes to gender disparities. Weeby rated the current state of financial-healthcare integration at a 6 out of 10, signaling both progress and room for improvement. Moving toward a 10, she said, will require a multifaceted approach that involves efforts around expanding research and clinical trials, better financial solutions and aligning healthcare services with women’s life stages and caregiving responsibilities.
After all, offering products and messaging that validate women’s roles as caretakers while encouraging them to prioritize their own health is essential, while simplifying payment processes and offering flexible financing options can help women access timely and quality care without exceeding their financial capacity.
And expanding funding for female-centered medical trials can improve women’s healthcare outcomes against a backdrop where women are often underrepresented in medical research, leading to gaps in treatment.
Read more: The Financial Downside of Mom as Family’s Number One Caregiver
Financial literacy also plays a critical role in enabling women to navigate both healthcare and personal finance, areas that are often intimidating and opaque. Promoting education around financial options, preventive care and the long-term benefits of maintaining healthy habits is essential to reducing the incidence of chronic diseases.
Encouraging patients, particularly women, to be proactive about their health through accessible financial education enables them to make better choices and invest in preventative measures.
As Weeby pointed out, understanding the benefits of small daily habits — such as healthier food choices or mindfulness exercises — can help prevent conditions that require costly treatment later on.
She emphasized the importance of integrating health-focused financial education into the broader healthcare experience. For example, insurers offering incentives for joining wellness programs or gym memberships can positively impact health outcomes. In addition, simplifying payment processes, clarifying medical bills and providing long-term care planning tools all reduce the stress and confusion that patients often experience in the healthcare system.
Looking to the future, Weeby identified two key themes that stand out in terms of innovation: data sharing and personalized healthcare. Integrating data and technology into healthcare delivery can revolutionize the industry, offering gender-specific solutions that address women’s unique challenges. For instance, digital scheduling tools can link family members’ appointments, creating convenience for women who juggle multiple responsibilities.
Simultaneously, improved billing accuracy, online payment simplification and cost transparency can significantly reduce stress along the healthcare journey. Personalized, patient-centric solutions tailored to women’s specific needs can foster active engagement with healthcare providers, leading to better long-term health outcomes.
“There’s a lot of innovative work happening that is going to change not just the healthcare industry broadly, but also the way we deliver care to patients — and in particular, women,” Weeby said.
We’re always on the lookout for opportunities to partner with innovators and disruptors.
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