An overriding goal of the award program is to recognize individuals and their research efforts that have the potential to empower women as health care consumers and providers. Aetna is a long-time supporter of APHA's Gerontological Health Section. Together we have worked to improve health care for older women. We're extremely pleased to award individuals who are providing breakthrough research on the growing health care issues facing aging American women and to support the mission of the Gerontological Health Section,'' said Janet Kennedy, vice president, Long-Term Care Division, Aetna Group Insurance. Older women continue to face challenging health care issues as both the provider and the recipient of care.
Women are the majority of care recipients and caregivers, and have longer life expectancies.
As a result, long-term care and health care in general are top issues of concern for women today. Older women are especially vulnerable to declines in economic status after the deaths of their spouses and are twice as likely as older men to live in poverty, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. With longer lives and less spousal support, women make up the majority of formal health care users. Women also are an important health care resource, and often the primary family caregiver. With more women in the workplace, caregiving responsibilities become more taxing.