On 8 April 2025, one month after International Women’s Day, the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) submitted a response to a public consultation on Women’s Health opened by the European Parliament’s Committee on Public Health (SANT). Drawing on the expertise of its members, EPHA’s submission emphasised the urgent need to adopt an intersectional and inclusive approach to women’s health across the EU.
Key Issues Raised in EPHA’s response
- Healthcare access remains deeply unequal: Migrant women, racialised women, women with disabilities and those living in poverty continue to face barriers to essential health services, including reproductive care and cancer screenings.
- LGBTIQ women face systemic barriers: Discrimination, stigma and poor practice within healthcare systems result in delayed or inadequate care. These challenges are compounded for those with intersecting identities, such as racialised or disabled LQBTIQ women.
- Gender bias persists in research and clinical care: Many conditions present differently in women but remain underdiagnosed and undertreated due to male-centric research models and limited data disaggregation.
- Mental health is often overlooked: Especially for women affected by violence or exclusion, access to safe and responsive mental health support is lacking.
- Structural inequalities must be addressed: From care burdens to leadership gaps, policies must reflect the full spectrum of gendered health disparities, beyond reproductive care alone.
Priority Areas for EU Action
- Universal access to SRHR, including safe abortion care and maternal healthcare.
- Inclusive and gender-sensitive healthcare systems, supported by anti-bias training and culturally safe services.
- Greater EU action on mainstreaming women’s health across Member States, particularly for marginalised and/or vulnerable groups.
- Intersectional research funding and the collection of disaggregated data to inform targeted interventions.
- Integration of women’s health into existing frameworks.