Placing priority on women's health

It is time to prioritize women's health in the offering of private collective insurance plans, according to sources the Insurance Portal has consulted. Among them, is Marie-Chantal Côté, vice president of group benefits at Sun Life, who cites a recent report published by Sun Life this spring, which reveals a significant health gap between men and women, despite efforts to achieve equity when it comes to providing the right insurance plans. 

The report, entitled Working Together for Women's Health, opens with an introduction by Côté: "For too long, we have refused to give women's health the attention it deserves, and women continue to experience the consequences, including in the workplace," Côté writes, specifically pointing to the obstacles including limiting career advancements adversely affecting women in the labour market.

This gender health gap is especially present in women's perception of their group insurance plans, according to the report, which highlights one-third of women indicating that their plans do not adequately cover all of their health needs—this, according to a national Ipsos survey conducted on behalf of Sun Life in February 2022. Their sample included just under 2,500 Canadian female workers, aged 18 to 65. 

The taboo of menopause 

In an interview with the Insurance Portal, Côté discusses these gender insurance-plan disparities, paying particular attention to menopause. The data in her report criticizes the support Canadian employers provide female workers—with three-quarters of women in the labour market indicating their employers do not provide support during this important stage of their life, or, in fact, infer negative narratives with respect to providing this support.

On June 6th, Sun Life partnered with the Menopause Foundation of Canada (MFC) with the aim of addressing this gap through support- and awareness initiatives. 

"There are up to 30 different symptoms related to menopause,” says Côté, noting that a significant portion of these are related to mental health.

“Currently, in Canada, there are more than five million women, aged 40 and older, who are in the labour market One-quarter of the workforce is currently transitioning to menopause or are in postmenopause," she adds. 

Further, among the symptoms identified in the Sun Life report, 80 per cent of women say they experience hot flashes, with 20 per cent of this group experiencing symptoms as that are “intense and disabling,” and which can persist for up to 10 years or longer. 

Increased mental load 

According to Côté, the healthcare industry "has focused a lot on men and also the more traditional roles and expectations of women." To illustrate this, she cites data from her company’s report which indicates that women are 50 per cent more likely than men to declare themselves as caregivers. Côté concurs, adding her own perception that women tend to prioritize supporting the health of their loved ones over themselves. 

The mental load of being a caregiver is one of Sun Life's hypotheses to explain why 40 per cent of women's disability-benefit claims are related to mental health, compared to only 30 per cent for men. As a second hypothesis, Côté mentions the challenges that reproductive health places on women, including menstruation, pregnancy, fertility treatments, postpartum depression, and menopause. 

In 2022, the insurer introduced its new Family Plus Program with expanded coverage of fertility-related services and medications to include medical expenses and well-being related to surrogacy and adoption.

Role of advisors 

Côté believes that employers can contribute to reducing the gender health gap through their offering of support and group insurance. "There are still biases on certain topics—even discomfort in using words like ‘menstruation’ or ‘menopause.’ We must communicate and raise awareness so that [these are] not taboo. These are normal phenomena that are part of women's health," she emphasizes. 

All the data in the Sun Life report leads Côté to declare an urgency to break the glass ceiling that holds back women in the workplace. "All employers face labour-shortage and talent-attraction challenges," she adds. 

Additionally, Côté asserts that group insurance advisors are well-positioned to propose group benefits and practices that support women. "Advisors can support organizations in their goal of having a very strong employer brand, attracting the best talents—talents that are highly engaged and stay in the organization," she says. 

Raising awareness 

As a member of the partnership and head of health at Mercer Canada, Julie E. Duchesne links women's health to the growing popularity of the topic of diversity, equity, and inclusion often represented by the acronym DEI.

"We talked about it a little bit a few years ago, but now we are in action mode. When choosing an employer, employees will consider these values," says Duchesne, who observes that companies have had to offer a more diverse range of benefits "that go beyond the typical family."

Duchesne highlights the fact that almost as many men as women are concerned about insurance-related issues affecting visible minorities and transgender Canadians. According to the infographic prepared by Mercer Marsh Benefits citing the Canadian results of the global study entitled "Health on Demand," (which sampled 1,000 Canadian respondents) 65 per cent of employees want their employer to support women's health, with 68 per cent of women and 62 per cent of men expressing this desire.

Says Duchesne: "Compared to elsewhere in the world, Canadian insurers have quickly evolved to meet emerging needs, such as those of transgender individuals and other visible minorities. Supporting women's health is a very hot topic right now."