Life

What Young Women *Really* Think About The AHCA

The GOP health care bill that passed the House last month left many Americans terrified and livid. As the American Health Care Act would remove requirements for maternity care and preventive health care and allow insurance companies to increase premiums on those with pre-existing conditions, it was particularly unpopular with women. But according to a recent SurveyMonkey survey of over 7,287 adults, men, it seems, aren't quite as worried.

Regardless of your political party, health care will be, at some point in your life, a necessity. But in most developed nations around the world, citizens don't have to worry if they can't afford a simple trip to the doctor or an unexpected visit to the ER. Australians, Canadians, (almost all) Europeans, Brazilians, Argentinians and the Japanese all benefit from universal health care. That means that, unlike Americans, they're not going to die because they can't afford insulin if they're diabetic, and they're not going to go bankrupt if they slip on a patch of ice and break their ankle. And yet, Americans are still squabbling over health care as if it's a partisan issue, and not a fundamental right as a human paying taxes in a civil society. But hey, maybe I'm just biased.

Here are five statistics about how women are responding to the AHCA:

1

Young Woman Are Most Opposed to the AHCA

Generation Y and Z are the most unhappy with the AHCA's limited coverage. Fifty-nine percent of women between the ages of 18-34 say that the AHCA will leave them "worse off" than they were under the Affordable Care Act, while only 44 percent of men in the same age group report feeling as negatively towards the AHCA.

2

Men Aren't As Worried About Maternity Care

It's no shocker, but men aren't really all that passionate about supporting women's health care measures. Sixty-seven percent of women "strongly support" a requirement for insurers to provide maternity coverage, while only 50 percent of men feel the same. On the flip side, 12 percent of men "strongly oppose" measures to keep maternity care a required benefit, while only six percent of women agree with them.

3

Men Over 65 Are More Likely To Support The AHCA

Trump's biggest supporters are the over 60 set, and many men of a certain age are equally excited about his health care plan. Forty-five percent of men over 65 say they will be "better off" under the AHCA, while only 27 percent of women in that age bracket agree. That's got to make for some pretty tense marriages out there...

4

Men Are More Likely To Think Ivanka Trump Has Been A Good Advocate For Women's Health Care

Although Ivanka Trump is not required to advocate for women's health care, she has been outspoken about her desire to advocate for working women. And the women surveyed about the AHCA aren't convinced she has been an effective advocate for women's health care, but the men seem to be. Fifty-three percent of men over 65 say she has been effective, while only 34 percent of women over 65 say the same. And when it comes to the younger folks, the numbers drop even lower, with 31 percent of men ages 18-34 agreeing, and 19 percent of women.

5

Women Overall Are More Likely To Be Opposed To The AHCA Than Men

Overall, it's women who are most strongly opposed to the AHCA. Sixty-two percent of women oppose the Republican-backed plan, compared with 53 percent of men who oppose it. As far as Obamacare, 61 percent of women support it, while only 47 percent of men do.

Because women make 80 percent of family health care decisions, it makes sense that they would be more intimately aware of the ins and outs of what health care coverage their families will require. And according to many women, the AHCA just won't cut it.