COVID-19 and the Women of the United States

Ananda Vigneswari Anebarassou

School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN


Abstract

The COVID—19 pandemic and the response measures continue to impact the physical and mental health of people around the world. The data suggest that men and women are differentially susceptible to COVID—19. Though men have a higher mortality rate than women, the United Nations (UN) has posited that women’s health can be adversely affected by COVID—19 because of their unique health needs and social responsibilities [1]. The UN is therefore urging all the countries to gender disaggregate their data in a timely manner which is currently lacking in the US. I believe that immediate and detailed gender disaggregation of COVID—19 related data is essential to prevent widening of gender disparities in our society. For women, this means preserving some of the achievements made during the last decade as a result of Affordable Care Act [2]. Inclusion of data on other gender minorities, which is currently lacking, can lead to improvement in their health outcomes.