Report rates women's health: improvements needed. (On First Reading).Are women getting the health care they need or deserve in the relatively affluent United States? Yes and no. "Despite limited advances, America s health policies are still failing women," says the National Women's Law Center The National Women's Law Center (NWLC) is a Washington, DC-based non-profit organization. Through litigation and policy initiatives, the Center strives to improve the lives of women and their families in the areas of health, employment, family economic security, and education. , which produced a report with the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine The University of Pennsylvania's School of Medicine, presently located in the University City section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was the United States's first school of medicine, founded at the College of Philadelphia, as the University was then called. , Oregon Health & Sciences University and others. The document, "Making the Grade on Women's Health Women's Health Definition Women's health is the effect of gender on disease and health that encompasses a broad range of biological and psychosocial issues. : A National and State-by-State Report Card," suggests women's health care could be improved by increasing access to insurance and health services health services Managed care The benefits covered under a health contract , upgrading support for preventive health measures, focusing greater attention on reproductive and mental health needs, addressing diferences in income, economic security and education, and placing a greater emphasis on research in women's health. The report also shows that more can be done to fight the primary health threat to women--cardiovascular disease, a largely preventable condition. The federal government is playing an important role in helping improve care, especially through recently enacted laws such as the Breast and Cervical Cancer Cervical Cancer Definition Cervical cancer is a disease in which the cells of the cervix become abnormal and start to grow uncontrollably, forming tumors. Treatment Act and the Health Care Fairness Act. But disparities still are a key issue--an American woman's health is significantly affected by race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and disability, according to the report. It warns that the lack of research and information on women's health hinders informed decisions. The current profile of women's health in the United States is peppered with factors that could be strengthened such as: 13.2 percent of women are uninsured and many more lack comprehensive coverage; many existing insurance policies fail to cover important services, such as breast or cervical cancer treatment or reconstructive surgery after mastectomies; women constitute the majority of long-term care patients and represent the majority of the poor--a concern because a strong relationship exists between health status and income. States that improved the most between the 2000 and 2001 reports were Iowa, Maryland, New York Maryland is a town in Otsego County, New York, United States. The population was 1,920 at the 2000 census. The Town of Maryland is on the county's south border, and was named for the U.S. state of the same name. , Rhode Island and the District of Columbia District of Columbia, federal district (2000 pop. 572,059, a 5.7% decrease in population since the 1990 census), 69 sq mi (179 sq km), on the east bank of the Potomac River, coextensive with the city of Washington, D.C. (the capital of the United States). . Twelve states adopted six or more new policies for improving women's health, and a number adopted plans to increase access to and improve women's health care. The report can be found at: www.nwlc.org |
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