Women have lower life expectancy in U.S. than other high-income nations: study

A new research study released by the Commonwealth Fund, reveals that women in the United States have significantly worse health care access, outcomes in life expectancy, avoidable deaths, mental health and rates of illness.

"What we really want to understand is what women's healthcare looks like across the life span," Munira Z. Gunja.

Gunja is the senior researcher of the study.

"Our study finds that women in the U.S. have lower life expectancy and really high rates of avoidable deaths," she said.

Gunja says what's worse is that the U.S. is the only country in the analysis without a universal health system, leading to a significant proportion of the American population that is uninsured, making access to adequate healthcare the worst in the country.

The study compares the U.S. to Australia, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

The report also identifies deep racial and ethnic disparities in Black and Hispanic women in regard to their access to health care and experiencing chronic conditions, all while facing socio-economic challenges.

"We know that Black women are three times more likely to die to maternal deaths compared to white women and we know that the vast majority of these deaths are considered preventable," Gunja said.

According to the study, women in the U.S. are also more likely to take multiple prescriptions regularly.

The study says 37% of Black women in the U.S. take four or more prescription medications regularly.

Over a quarter of Hispanic women in the U.S. report being uninsured, and 10 million women living in the U.S. are uninsured.

"Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for women in the us.

Korea and Japan have the highest life expectancy among women.