When a Surprise Medical Bill Hits, It’s Women Who Absorb Most of the Shock

Alieza Durana wrote for our pop-up blog on Slate about the gender disparity in income and financial outcomes made clear by recently released customer data from JPMorgan Chase. 

One of the strangest aspects of President Trump’s first 100 days was the rise and resurgence of the American Health Care Act, the bill replacing the Affordable Care Act that passed the House of Representatives on May 4. Inherent in the debate on how the bill’s changes would disproportionately affect women's health care are concerns about its potential impact on women’s pay and financial health. New data from the JPMorgan Chase Institute underscores those concerns: Tracking spending data for 210,000 Chase customers between 2013 and 2015, the institute examined what happens to their customers in the face of large medical expenses; e.g., that trip to the emergency room when little Carla breaks her arm on the playground.