Medical misdiagnosis costs billions—women often pay more

Medical misdiagnosis costs hundreds of billions of dollars each year in the U.S., a financial burden that quietly drains household finances—especially for women, who are more likely to face years of repeat appointments, tests, and prescriptions before getting the right answer. For many, this means hundreds or thousands of dollars in extra bills each year, often for care that doesn’t resolve their symptoms. 

The average American family spends around 11 percent of their household income on healthcare premiums and out-of-pocket costs, according to the law firm High Rise Financial. One in three Americans now report skipping meals or cutting back on utilities to pay medical bills—a burden that grows heavier when diagnosis is missed or delayed. 

Women are 20 to 30 percent more likely to be misdiagnosed, according to High Rise Financial’s figures. They are 50 percent more likely to be misdiagnosed following a heart attack, and 33 percent more likely to be misdiagnosed during a stroke. 

For conditions like endometriosis or autoimmune disease, the diagnostic journey can stretch for years. High Rise Financial’s analysis shows women with endometriosis could end up spending 7 to 10 years seeking a correct diagnosis, incurring repeated costs for tests and medications that don’t address the real issue. For cancer, women wait an average of 2.5 years longer than men for a correct diagnosis. 

If a single MRI can cost up to $3,500 and an overnight hospital stay averages $2,600, then misdiagnosis can quickly become hugely expensive for patients and families. 

Dr. Anupam Jena, professor of health care policy at Harvard Medical School, told Newsweek that implicit and explicit biases in clinical interactions—such as less time spent listening to women or overlooking symptoms—drive up the risk of misdiagnosis. 

A significant proportion of modern medicine is based on the study of men, Jena said, meaning that for diseases that present differently in women may go undetected or be diagnosed too late. “The classic teaching of this is how heart attack symptoms can be different in men and women,” Jena added.  

Dr. Hardeep Singh, professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, told Newsweek: “We now increasingly rely on diagnostic technology and labs and such to diagnose patients, but we also have less time to listen to patients, examine them and ensure we are capturing all their symptoms, making reliable decisions and acting accordingly.” This means more repeat testing and more costs for patients, especially those who are misdiagnosed. 

The cost of this also extends far beyond anyone’s wallet—every year, around 795,000 Americans die or are left permanently disabled because of a misdiagnosis, High Rise Financial said, though other estimates have put this higher.  

“Our best estimates suggest that there are at least 50 million diagnostic errors a year in the U.S. (and probably closer to 100 million) and that roughly 1 million of them cause serious permanent disability or death,” Dr. David Newman-Toker, a professor of neurology, ophthalmology, and otolaryngology and director of the Armstrong Institute Center for Diagnostic Excellence, told Newsweek. For families, this could mean prolonged hospital care, lost income, and ongoing expenses for support and rehabilitation. 

The issue does not seem to be showing signs of getting better. “I have studied this for past two decades and its definitely not improving,” Singh said.  

Newman-Toker said that some autopsy data indicated that between 1959 to 1999 the rate of lethal diagnostic errors in hospitals declined, though Medicare data from 2007 to 2014 in U.S. emergency departments has since found this trend appears either to have levelled off for some medical conditions, or has actually reversed slightly for others. 

Ultimately, this problem “won’t go away until it is given sustained attention and investment,” Newman-Toker said. It requires “increased research funding, routine deployment of quality metrics and regulatory oversight related to diagnostic errors and pay-for-outcomes reimbursement models that incentivize clinical innovation toward better diagnostic outcomes.”