Female Populations

commentary

Improving Inclusion of Women Veterans

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is formally changing its official mission statement to be more inclusive. This is a meaningful step forward in symbolically affirming the VA's dedication to serving all who served.

Kayla M. Williams @KWilliams101

commentary

Gender Biases in Health Care: Listen to Women About Their Own Health

More and more information, evidence, and personal stories are emerging suggesting women are not being listened to or believed by health care professionals about their symptoms of physical illness. There is ongoing work in the United Kingdom to improve and integrate women's health services, which creates hope for improvements.

Lucy Hocking

blog

Taiwan, Putin's Holy War, Mining the Moon: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on why China likely won't attack Taiwan anytime soon, Vladimir Putin's “holy war” in Ukraine, why it's time to make rules for space-mining, and more.

commentary

Working Moms' Winter Math Is Getting Tougher

Working mothers remain disproportionately responsible for raising children, and no one can work and take care of sick kids at the same time. In the coming months, the tripledemic of COVID, the flu, and RSV will pull a lot of working mothers out of the office for days at a stretch, compounding the obstacles that women already face.

Kathryn A. Edwards

q&a

Abortion After the Dobbs Decision: Q&A with RAND Researchers

The overturning of Roe v. Wade is likely to disproportionately affect vulnerable populations, including U.S. service women and pregnant women with substance use disorders. And abortion misinformation will likely increase. RAND researchers discuss these issues and potential policy responses.

commentary

Doubling NIH Funding for Women's Health Would Yield Substantial Return on Investment

The scientific evidence base generally is biased toward the male body as a result of a long history of generous funding for diseases that predominantly affect men and underfunding for those that predominantly affect women. But the cost of the science pales in comparison to the price we continue to pay for what we don't know about caring for women.

Chloe E. Bird @ChloeBirdPhD

blog

Employing Insurgency in Ukraine, U.S. Hospital Prices, Reaching the Middle Class: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on how insurgency could give Ukraine an edge over Russia, repurposing commercial buildings to help address L.A.’s housing crisis, Americans’ options for reaching the middle class, and more.

commentary

The Marriage Plot

For more than a quarter century, the U.S. government has been sending an unmistakable message to poor, single mothers: Get married. If America genuinely wants to address poverty and achieve gender equality, this has to change.

Kathryn A. Edwards

blog

Putin's State of Mind, the Digital Skills Gap, International Women's Day: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on deterring Russian President Vladimir Putin, understanding America’s gun policy debate, improving teacher diversity, and more.

commentary

What the Media Might Have Missed About South Korea's Elections

The toxicity of the anti-feminist discourse in South Korea does not accurately reflect the gender-related tensions and problems that most Koreans currently face. The obstacles to improving gender equity are more mundane and more ubiquitous than the hyperbole of anti-feminism suggests.

Erik Mobrand

commentary

Underfunding of Research in Women's Health Issues Is the Biggest Missed Opportunity in Health Care

For far too long, the medical sciences have treated men and women as interchangeable subjects, favoring men's health for funding and the male body for study. This approach creates a problem, not just for women but for everyone. Not only does it miss a large and critical slice of the population, it leaves an unknown amount of science unexplored.

Chloe E. Bird @ChloeBirdPhD

commentary

Married Moms Aren't Striking Workers, but They Are Saying the Same Thing

If we are in the middle of a labor shortage, recruiting people back into the labor force is key to sustaining a recovery. The historic work choices of married mothers reveal a lot about what might lure people back into the workforce.

Kathryn A. Edwards

commentary

How the Coronavirus Changed the Childcare Debate

Policymakers have long had evidence that childcare enables mothers to work. What the COVID-19 pandemic taught everyone is how the lack of childcare can be a disastrous constraint.

Kathryn A. Edwards

commentary

A Black Brother Needs Love, Too

Elected and appointed to important roles, Black women may have the clout needed to play a significant role in shaping policy. How will they use it? Will they make more and stronger calls to protect Black women? Or will they use their influence to extend these calls to protect Black men and highlight the similar yet unique barriers Black men face?

Jhacova Williams

commentary

Should Mothers Work? We've Been Asking the Wrong Question

As schools and day cares closed due to the pandemic, millions of women were driven from the labor market. What is it worth to the United States to have mothers in the workforce?

Kathryn A. Edwards