Have Gender Gaps in Insurance Coverage and Access to Care Narrowed under Health Reform? Findings from Massachusetts
Sharon K. Long, Karen Stockley, Shanna Shulman
American Economic Review · 2011 · Volume 101 · Issue 3
Abstract
Under its health reform legislation, Massachusetts has achieved near universal insurance coverage, along with significant gains in health care access and affordability. This paper examines the impacts of health reform in Massachusetts on differences in coverage, access, and affordability for women and men. We find that both women and men gained under health reform, with the gender gap in insurance coverage narrowed as men's coverage increased relative to that of women. However, the gaps in access and affordability of care have not narrowed—women in Massachusetts continue to report more unmet need for care and problems affording care than men.
Keywords
Insurance, Insurance Companies, State and Local Government: Health, Education, Welfare, Public Pensions, Health: Government Policy, Regulation, Public Health, Economics of Gender, Non-labor Discrimination
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