The groundbreaking research announced in December, identifying an association between uterine fibroids and cardiovascular disease, was exceptional not just for the potential life-saving health impacts. Research that focuses on women and their health needs has always been rare.
Women make up more than half of the global population, yet their health remains underfunded and under-researched. This is not just a scientific oversight; it’s a bias and a public health crisis that demands immediate attention. The previous federal administration’s efforts to address this crisis have been shunted aside by the current administration, leaving a gap that the state of Maryland can help address.
Much of the research guiding treatments, dosages and even medical textbooks continues to be grounded in male physiology. As a result, the need for sex- and gender-based equity in health research is strikingly clear.
Cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death among women globally, is often diagnosed based on standards that reflect male physiology. A chilling 2020 report from the British Heart Foundation documented that the deaths of at least 8,000 women in England and Wales could have been prevented through equitable cardiac treatment over a 10-year period (2003–2013).
Despite significant advancements in medical research, a troubling disparity persists in funding allocated to women-specific medical research. Historically, women’s health issues have been underrepresented in research agendas, leading to significant gaps in knowledge and treatment options. Women often experience different symptoms and responses to diseases compared to men; yet, much research has primarily focused on male subjects.
Early COVID-19 research, only five years ago, failed to consider sex and gender differences, illustrating the broader and current bias in medical research. The entire COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these disparities, highlighting how health inequities affect women disproportionately, particularly women of color and those from low-income backgrounds.
This bias deprives women of appropriate health care solutions. Issues such as menopause and perimenopause, endometriosis and Alzheimer’s disease — conditions that exclusively or disproportionately affect women — remain inadequately studied. Gaps in research leave a void in our understanding of how diseases and conditions affect women differently. For women of color and those with disabilities, these gaps are often magnified, leading to even greater health disparities.
With little apparent interest in women’s health at the federal level, it’s time for state and municipal governments across the country to fill the void. States are in a position to prioritize women’s health by convening the resources and talents of state and local government, America’s research universities, pharmaceutical and tech executives, foundations and community leaders to right this wrong.
Under Gov. Wes Moore’s leadership, Maryland can establish a state-level initiative that can contribute to transforming the landscape of women’s health research in the United States. As the state that boasts some of the country’s leading research universities and medical schools, along with robust pharmaceutical and tech sectors, Maryland is uniquely positioned to convene and spearhead a new Maryland Initiative on Women’s Health Research and produce research that can be used by public health entities nationwide and globally.
This will not require an expensive or slow-moving bureaucracy. A board of directors-type body, perhaps chaired by first lady Dawn Moore, along with a small technical staff from the state Department of Health, Baltimore City Department of Health and academic experts from Maryland’s leading universities, could implement a multi-faceted approach. Extra attention could be placed on the most pressing issues affecting women in the state, such as high maternal mortality rates among women of color or identifying how artificial intelligence (AI) can be leveraged to revolutionize health care practices for women and correct the sex and gender biases currently seen in medical practice.
AI can significantly contribute to better understanding, preventing and treating conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, autoimmune disorders and gynecological health issues. However, this will only be effective if AI developers mandate the use of sex-disaggregated data, ensuring that gender disparities are confronted. Righting this wrong and recommending algorithmic audits of AI systems to promote gender equity in health care is the type of big win that could be achieved by new policy recommendations of a Maryland Initiative on Women’s Health Research.
In the spirit of progress and collaboration embodied by Moore’s admirable initiative to uplift men and boys, Maryland can also lead the charge in helping to reshape the landscape of women’s health. In his State of the State speech last February, Moore argued, “investing in our people means following the data.”
It’s time to invest in women, prioritize their health and reshape a system that historically underappreciated, undervalued and too often ignored their contributions and needs, especially at a time when women’s health is seeing tremendous backslides.
Michelle Kaufman is an associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. These views are her own and do not reflect the policies or positions of Johns Hopkins University/Johns Hopkins Health System.
