Study Traces Health Of State Women Washington Women Live Longer, But Many Poor
A report on women’s health in Washington shows them living longer and experiencing a better standard of living than women in the United States as a whole.
But a surprisingly large number of woman in the state live below the poverty line, said the study released Thursday by the Washington Women’s Education Foundation.
Nearly 16 percent of Washington women 75 years and older are living below the poverty line, the study showed. More than 11 percent of Washington women ages 16-64 live below the federal poverty level, it said.
“There are some startling facts and trends that shocked us all,” said Dr. Chris Hale, report statistician. “In a state where comparable worth is the law of the land, Washington women, especially those 75 years and older are surprisingly poor.”
The study also found a dramatic increase since 1980 in death rates from cervical cancer and tobacco-related causes.
Tobacco-related deaths rose nearly 50 percent from 1980 to 1995.
Washington also was above the national average in births to single women. More than 27 percent of all births in the state were to single women, compared with a national average of 20 percent. The state figure doubled from 1980 to 1990.
The Washington Women’s Education Foundation, based in Olympia, is a private nonprofit organization founded in 1986 to inform and educate the public about issues of concern to women.
The study was undertaken because there was no single source of information available regarding the health of Washington women, the foundation said. The group said the report is the first in the nation to address women’s health status and needs on a statewide basis.
“This is just a beginning,” Hale said. “This report needs to be replicated in other states and redone regularly in Washington state. This is an excellent first step in helping us raise the right questions about the future of health care in Washington.”
The foundation said the report researched the nearly 2.8 million women living in the state. Age, race, ethnic background, sexuality, income and education were all considered.
The report said the women studied ranged from those living “itinerant lives on wheat and fruit farms” to those feeling the “stresses of dense urban communities and the geographic isolation of rural communities.”
Its recommendations included:
Improved access to primary care by requiring 100 percent coverage of annual Pap smears, mammograms and breast exams by Washington health plans.
Support of programs that fight tobacco addiction.
Prevention of domestic violence against women with three broad approaches: training and screening for health care providers; treatment for batterers and persons at risk of becoming batterers; treatment, support and assistance for victims or potential victims of violence.
Improved access to reproductive health services.
Development and implementation of a comprehensive and integrated health care data collection and reporting system.
The report found that nearly 2.8 million of Washington state’s 4.86 million residents are women, based on the 1990 census. Half were between 25 and 64 years old and one in four was under 18.
Nine out of 10 were white, 5.7 percent were Asian, 3.1 percent black, 1.9 percent American Indian and less than 5 percent Hispanic.
Nine percent of Washington households were headed by women, based on 1990 figures, and nearly 17 percent of women 25 and older lacked a high school diploma. More than one-third of the families headed by a woman younger than 65 had incomes below the poverty line, the report said.
Families with female heads of household and children under 18 had incomes about 32 percent that of married couples with children, the report found.
Fifty-four percent of the women were employed in the paid labor force, as compared with 69 percent of Washington men. The average woman’s full-time annual earnings were $20,607, compared with $31,026 for men.
xxxx WOMEN’S HEALTH The report also found: Ten percent of Washington women do not have health insurance. Teen birth rates have risen 25 percent since 1980. Reports of domestic violence are increasing in the state, up from 3.1 arrests per 1,000 in 1988 to 5.3 arrests per 1,000 in 1993.