Education provides protection against poverty, but women in Minnesota earn less than half as much as men with comparable education. Even taking educational achievement into account, women of color are more likely to live in poverty than white women. As women get older, their presence in the workforce decreases. However, after age 65, American Indian and African American women are two to three times as likely as Asian or white women to remain in the workforce. African American women are more than twice as likely to have a low birthweight baby than any other racial group.
Women of color are less likely to receive early and regular prenatal care.
There are currently inadequate data on screening for a variety of health problems, including cholesterol, osteoporosis, mental health problems, and eating disorders. The number of women who don't have a regular clinic or health care provider, or who lack health insurance, has not changed. The screening rates for breast and cervical cancer in Minnesota are promising. Female alcoholics have death rates 50 to 100 percent higher than those of male alcoholics. Younger women in Minnesota are smoking in increasing numbers.