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High health-care costs are hitting women within the U.S. workforce much harder than men.
Working women spend $15.4 billion more in out-of-pocket health expenses annually in comparison with their male counterparts, in line with a recent evaluation of employer-sponsored health plans from Deloitte Consulting.
The study found women spend 18% greater than men on copays and deductibles, on average. That is after excluding costs related to pregnancy and maternity, in line with the recent report, and despite total health expenditures for girls which can be just 10% higher than for men.
“It is a problem we’re identifying that business leaders can actually solve inside their very own organizations. The takeaway being that girls receives a commission less, and that they pay more for health care,” said Dr. Kulleni Gebreyes, U.S. chief health equity officer at Deloitte Consulting.
The result, she said, is a disproportionate financial burden.
Women are likely to utilize more medical care than men, partly resulting from annual gynecological exams and the high costs of breast cancer imaging.
While annual exams are sometimes fully covered, follow-ups that may result from those visits incur copays and trigger deductibles. A lot of those services are sometimes costlier than the everyday deductible, resulting in a better cost-sharing burden.
Deloitte analysts say employers could close the $15.4 billion cost-sharing gender gap through enhanced advantages design, at an estimated cost of $133 per worker per yr, or about $11 per 30 days.
“Our ask is that corporations take a look at their data; examine if and where the gaps exist and step back to have more of an equitable design process to give you what are the health advantages that may meet the needs of their workforce,” said Gebreyes.