It’s long been assumed that advancements in medicine will prolong life Expectancy while decreasing premature deaths. However, new studies show that Women in parts of the country are not benefiting from this trend.

Amid the hyper-partisan controversy of Obamacare, it’s easy to forget that the primary purpose behind the ACA healthcare reform law was to give more Americans access to Health insurance. Whether the Affordable Care Act was the right solution or not, it’s hard to dispute that the U.S. healthcare system is broken. Millions of people continue to lack health insurance and access to quality healthcare.

Despite having the world’s highest level of healthcare spending per capita, the United States one of the worst health outcomes records among developed nations. We lag behind in life expectancy, premature death rates, and death by treatable diseases. , according to a July study in the Journal of the American Medicine Association.

Over the past three decades, health disadvantages have disproportionately impacted women, particularly those without a high school diploma, and those living in the South and West.  A study published by the University of Wisconsin researchers David Kindig and Erika Cheng discovered that in nearly 50 percent of counties mortality rates among women increased, while only 3 percent of counties that saw mortality rates among men increase.

This is not the first time researchers have reported the strong correlation between education and health outcomes in women. The journal Health Affairs found that life expectancy for white, female, high school dropouts dropped dramatically over the past 18 years. Women in this demographic now have a life expectancy that’s five years shorter than the generation before them.

Earlier this week it was reported that life expectancy for Americans declined last year, with men now closing the traditional life expectancy gap between the men and women.

Life expectancy at selected ages, by sex (CDC/NCHS/HHS/NVSS)

With president elect Donald J. Trump vowing to Make America Great Again, what will be done to reverse this trend? Here’s what the new president claims his administration will do to further reform healthcare in America.

Ref: Journal of the American Medicine Association,
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