US election: Trump urged to recognise healthcare innovation opportunities

Joanne Ellis, healthcare expert at Pinsent Masons, was commenting after Trump’s victory in the 2024 US presidential election.

The election results have significant implications for healthcare in the US, with issues pertaining to women’s health in particular having been particularly politicised during the campaign phase. Policies on reproductive rights, access to healthcare services, and funding for women’s health programmes are among those expected to change under Trump’s presidency.

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Some of the debate during the election campaign centred on Trump’s plans to reduce federal spending on Medicaid. Medicaid is a source of healthcare coverage for low-income women, providing access to preventive services, maternal care, and family planning. The future funding and expansion of this services faces some uncertainty following the election results. The new US administration is also expected to reduce Title X funding. Title X is a federal program that provides funding for family planning and preventive health services to low-income and uninsured individuals. The program supports clinics that offer services such as contraception, cancer screenings, and prenatal care.

However, Trump’s campaign also set out plans to focus on strategies such as reducing regulatory burdens on healthcare providers as well as promoting private sector solutions in its bid to improve maternal health.

Ellis called on the Trump administration to recognise the opportunities for innovation in healthcare, which she said has the “potential to increase the accessibility of healthcare to more people and, when coupled with a focus on nutrition and well-being, to significantly improve outcomes”.

She added: “I hope the US continue to be pioneers taking a leading role in healthcare and women’s health and move away from single issue ideological debates which to many do not sit well with an otherwise liberal and progressive nation.”