Falling through the cracks: Women, depression and health insurance coverage in Ontario

Drawing on the theoretical insights of feminist political economy scholarship, this thesis considers women's use of public and private health insurance in the context of neo-liberal restructuring. It offers analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with women in Hamilton, Ontario, a location particularly hard hit by neo-liberal reforms. This research finds that women coping with depression face insufficient access to care in the wake of receding public health insurance coverage and the expansion of private health insurance in the province. Limits to public health insurance coverage are found to restrict these women, while private health insurance plans are found to offer exclusive and narrow coverage.