AXA Health has called on the Government to take action in four key areas to reduce gender health inequality and deliver real change for women across the UK:
- Full funding of the Women’s Health Strategy in full until 2032 to ensure that women have access to the health services they need.
- A reduction in average waiting times for women’s health conditions, including endometriosis which can take up to eight years from onset of symptoms for a woman to receive a diagnosis.
- Encouragement and support for companies with over 250 employees to implement menstruation, menopause, and fertility plans. Women make up nearly half of the UK working population, yet there is still a lack of sufficient support in workplaces.
- Guidance and support to small and medium enterprises to ensure they are equipped to understand women’s health issues and support their workforce.
- Expert speakers, including AXA Health’s Dr Pallavi Bradshaw, highlighted the impact conditions like these can have on individuals, as well as the effect women’s ill-health has on business and the wider economy. At the event, MPs experienced simulated period pains, endometriosis, and menopause symptoms, using specialist equipment provided by Over The Bloody Moon.
In a statement, AXA Health CEO Heather Smith revealed that: "Our research last year revealed that around 85% of working-age women have experienced at least four women’s health conditions, and that neglecting women’s health at work costs the UK economy a shocking £20.2bn a year."
AXA Health is able to support women's health in numerous ways; directly through services like our holistic menopause service (developed together with the British Menopause Society) and Peppy, as well through the everyday insight and support available from our clinical experts on the AXA Health website.