One in four women report cost-related nonadherence versus one in seven men
MONDAY, Aug. 3, 2020 (HealthDay News) — Cost-related prescription nonadherence is highest among younger U.S. women compared with individuals living in 10 other high-income countries, according to a report published in the August issue of Health Affairs.
Jamie R. Daw, Ph.D., from the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health in New York City, and Michael R. Law, Ph.D., from University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, used data from the Commonwealth Fund International Health Policy Survey to compare cost-related prescription nonadherence among younger (ages 18 to 64 years) and older (≥65 years) women and men in 11 high-income countries (Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States).
The researchers found that among younger adults, the unadjusted female-male disparity was larger in the United States versus other countries, with one in four younger women reporting cost-related nonadherence versus one in seven younger men. Even after adjusting for age, income, and chronic conditions, this large disparity persisted. There were smaller but significant female-male differences among younger women in Australia and Canada. There were no significant female-male differences among older adults in adjusted analyses in any country.
“Sex differences in cost-related nonadherence in the United States may produce important sex-related disparities in health outcomes that deserve further research and policy attention,” the authors write.
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