Urgent Policy Reforms Needed for Women’s Health Research
LONDON, May 21, 2025 — Global consultancy Kearney, in collaboration with the World Economic Forum’s Global Alliance for Women’s Health and supported by the Gates Foundation, has released a report emphasizing the necessity of reform in women’s health research.
The Severity of the Issue
Despite women making up half of the global population, a mere 7% of healthcare research funding is directed towards conditions that specifically affect them. Alarmingly, only 5% of available medications have been adequately tested and deemed safe during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
Key Recommendations for Reform
The report, titled Prescription for Change: Policy Recommendations for Women’s Health Research, outlines five critical recommendations aimed at rectifying the shortcomings in women’s health research:
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Innovative Funding Mechanisms
Implement a mix of regulatory and financial incentives to enhance the viability of women’s health R&D. This includes regulatory adjustments, tax credits, targeted research grants, and matching public-private funding initiatives.
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Enhanced Inclusion in Clinical Trials
Mandate representation of sex, age, and racial categories in clinical trials, ensuring enrollment reflects real-world disease prevalence. This includes a financial backing for a maternal investigation plan to include pregnant and lactating women in trials.
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Standardized Clinical Trial Data
Establish uniform terminology and data collection methods to better categorize clinical trial participants. Comprehensive sex-specific benefit-risk assessments are essential for understanding distinct health impacts on women.
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Women-Centric Trial Design
Shift towards more inclusive clinical trial strategies featuring tailored recruitment and community engagement efforts to foster participation, particularly among underserved demographics.
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Transparency in Sex-Specific Information
Regularly update clinical guidelines, drug labels, and patient information to accurately reflect sex-specific differences in treatment safety and efficacy, grounded in disaggregated data from trials.
Expert Insights
“For too many women, healthcare still means misdiagnoses, delayed treatment, and hitting dead ends,” said Paula Bellostas Muguerza, global lead of Kearney’s Healthcare and Life Sciences practice. “These aren’t isolated experiences… This report sets out five policy areas that can begin to change that.”
“Medical care must be personalized for women,” emphasized Shyam Bishen, head of the Centre for Health and Healthcare at the World Economic Forum. “The policy recommendations we are advocating are central to enabling more breakthrough treatments, essential to global development.”
Sanjana Bhardwaj, deputy director of global policy and advocacy at the Gates Foundation, noted, “Transforming women’s health research isn’t optional; it’s critical… Now is the moment for us to turn that possibility into policy and policy into progress.”
