Why is the EU Not Investing in Women’s Healthcare?

Women’s health is apparently not a priority of the European Union. Many member states, such as Italy, Hungary, Poland and many others, are continuously allowed to keep anti-abortion stances and effectively prevent women from learning how to take care of their bodies both inside and outside the sexual dimension, not promoting gender and sex education as a mandatory subject in the public schooling system. In fact, as of 2022, more than 64,9% of practitioners in Italy refuse to administer this medical treatment. (Pagella Politica. 2022.). Going past the matter of abortion, the EU has also demonstrated little interest in legislating on menopause/hormonal treatments reimbursement schemes and female-oriented healthcare R&D. Although the European Commission’s Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025 was specifically drafted to address structural obstacles to women’s equality in research and the workplace, specific provisions on public healthcare are still absent or greatly insufficient, with minimal focus on results.

The Women’s health gap and how it can be addressed

Women spend 25 percent more time in “poor health” relative to men, which translates to an average of nine years in poor health, affecting their ability to generate earnings and participate in community life. Much of this health gap derives directly from the systemic obstacles that women face in the health industry such as lower effectiveness of treatments compared to men, poorer care, and lack of data, and should therefore be regarded as a priority in light of new market opportunities and public concerns on equality. In fact, “More than half of the health gap for women occurs during their working years, corresponding to about 80% of the estimated GDP impact.” (McKinsey, 2024). Promoting policies addressing this issue would not only would improve the health and lives of millions of women but also boost the global economy by at least $1 trillion annually by 2040 (McKinsey, 2024).

“FemTech” is a niche in the vast Smart Healthcare market focusing on innovative solutions tackling women’s health through the whole life cycle, from puberty to adulthood and maternity, and finally menopause. FemTech as an industry consists of implementing IoT and new technology into women’s healthcare, such as smart body scanning, predictive tools for hormone substitution therapy during menopause and dosage recommendations, period tracking devices, innovative fertility planning and postnatal care with a focus on enabling self-care. The FemTech sector has been extensively developed in the US, where legislation on data privacy and availability of Venture Capital makes it particularly convenient for start-ups to expand. In the European Union, FemTech is growing but faces many obstacles with funding. Most EU ventures focus on menstrual and fertility health, with many initiatives to promote self-care via online platforms and wearable devices. AI and data integration are being implemented to provide personalized health counseling to women, but some areas such as menopause symptoms prevention is still left unchecked.  The main issue behind this underdevelopment is the lack of awareness among European investors and lower availability of capital, hence an alarming lack of government financing schemes aimed at innovation in this field.

Obstacles to implementation

Female-oriented healthcare faces many challenges:

1. Security concerns: Stakeholders need to ensure user data privacy and protection when handling sensitive data, while balancing cloud storage and cybersecurity costs.

2. Stigmas: Cultural barriers pose a great challenge when discussing women’s health when some topics have been historically considered “indecent” or taboo. People might not want to openly share their medical journey, and this could prevent other patients from finding answers and diagnosis faster.

3. Funding: Many female entrepreneurs face challenges obtaining funding. In fact, a report by PitchBook found that only 2% of venture capital funding went to female-led start-ups in 2022. (Femtech insider. 2023). Hence, many cities fail to gain traction as start-up hubs for FemTech. For example, investors have shown a lack of interest in the possibilities-rich Hong Kong FemTech market (Lo Hoi-ying, 2023).

4. Strict and non-technical regulation: In many countries there exist strict laws regarding the testing of medical devices, trial conditions and assessment of functionality. Moreover, there is a systemic lack of reimbursement programs aimed at women during menopause. Such programs already exist for fertility and maternity in many countries but are absent or insufficient when considering menopausal care.

5. Insufficient awareness: Many women do not gain access to sufficient information due to poor education and lack of public campaigns, with public healthcare systems often lagging. Since public legislation supporting menopause research and treatment has been gaining the spotlight gradually in recent years, we are still unable to see effective drafting and implementation.

Policy solutions

The EU must act fast and secure stakeholders’ interest as much as resources directed towards the betterment of women’s health solutions in the EU. As the healthcare sector is projected to grow globally due to aging population and tech advancements, the EU must not only create a favorable regulatory framework, but also directly contribute to the development of FemTech by devising adequate reimbursement schemes and smart investment allocation. Legislators should remember that gender equality is inseparable from healthcare, and our next actions will impact both the well-being of men and women and the EU economy.

FemTech is not just a necessary solution to systemic obstacles faced by women in our society, but also a certain and promising opportunity.