Women Own More Health Insurance, but the Adequacy Gap Still Exists

News Desk, News Nation 360: Care Health Insurance identified the significant change in the health security of women on International Women’s Day in 2026. They identified that the percentage of female health insurance buyers has risen significantly. They identified that currently, 28-30% of their individual health insurance portfolio consists of female buyers. Another interesting phenomenon is the self-protection gap. While only 30% of Indian women between the ages of 15 and 49 years hold health insurance policies, the same percentage is 33% for men. However, the average amount insured by Indian women has risen to a more robust amount of ₹10-15 lakh. Care’s COO, Manish Dodeja, identified that Indian women have been the health anchors of their families. However, in recent times, they have been gradually stepping into the role of primary policyholders. This is because of the rising cost of healthcare and the increasing awareness of non-communicable diseases like hypertension, diabetes, and breast cancer. However, the balance in the ecosystem is still tilted. While the latest IRDAI statistics identified that 34% of life insurance policies were bought by women, only 29-32% of insurance distributors were female. This is seen as an important phenomenon in making the financial well-being of the 1.56 crore new female formal workers in India robust.

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