Focus on Yemen | Health Care Access Topic Brief
Health Care Access
In addition to gathering information about women’s and men’s economic, social and political status, the SWMENA survey investigated the extent to which women in Yemen had access to, or the opportunity to make use of, formal health care. 1 The survey also examined issues of affordability, quality of care, utilization, and proximity to medical services. This topic brief presents the principal findings with respect to women’s ability to access and get care through formal health services.
Access to Health Care
Yemeni men and women were asked if they have access to a formal health care provider. Women report slightly higher access than men. Almost half of all women have access (48%), while only 37% of men do (Figure 1).
However, access to formal heath care when needed seems to vary in Yemen by the area and region where one lives, as well as by level of formal education and household income. Women living in urban settlements are far more likely than women in rural areas to have health care access (Figure 2).
In all but one region of the country, almost half or more of all women state that they do not have access to a formal health care provider. However, access varies significantly across the different regions of Yemen.
