Highlights:
U.S. women report the least positive experiences among the 11 countries studied. They have the greatest burden of chronic illness, highest rates of skipping needed health care because of cost, difficulty affording their health care, and are least satisfied with their care.
Women in the U.S. have the highest rate of maternal mortality because of complications from pregnancy or childbirth, as well as among the highest rates of caesarean sections. Women in Sweden and Norway have among the lowest rates of both.
Women in Sweden and the U.S. report the highest rates of breast cancer screening among countries surveyed; women in Norway, Sweden, Australia, and the U.S. have the lowest rates of breast cancer–related deaths.
More than one-quarter of women in the U.S. and Switzerland report spending $2,000 or more out of pocket on medical costs for themselves or their family in the past year compared to 5 percent or fewer in most of the other study countries.
More than one-third of women in the U.S. report skipping needed medical care because of costs, a far higher rate than the other countries included in the study.U.S. women are less likely to rate their quality of care as excellent or very good compared to women in all other countries studied.
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