Womens Health Investment Outlook 2026

Leverage partnerships to mobilize capital Stakeholders: Investors, philanthropy and development funders, public funders, industry, researchers, healthcare systems Many promising women’s health innovations struggle to attract the capital needed to reach scale. Research and programmes targeting conditions such as endometriosis and PCOS require substantial funding to reach proof of concept, yet early translational uncertainty and long timelines often deter traditional venture investors, while public and philanthropic funding rarely extends far enough to de-risk assets for institutional capital, creating a translational “valley of death” between early-stage research and commercial investment. Partnerships that combine public, private and philanthropic resources can use blended finance – such as pooled investment vehicles, innovation studios or matching mechanisms that link philanthropic or public grants to private funding once milestones are met – to bridge this valley, expand the investable pipeline and attract diverse funders.As innovations progress towards commercialization, co-financing with health systems, payers or industry partners can accelerate validation, reimbursement and distribution. Partnerships with corporate strategics or technology platforms can also provide growth capital. Proof point: In the US, the NIH and the Foundation for the NIH partnered with leading biopharma companies and philanthropies to launch the Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP) for high- burden diseases such as Alzheimer’s, lupus and type 2 diabetes.109 By establishing shared, publicly accessible data and analysis platforms that enabled biomarker discovery and validation, AMP de-risked early-stage therapeutic targets and made them more attractive for industry investment.110 Industry re-engaged at scale. The Alzheimer’s therapeutics market now exceeds $5 billion annually,111 demonstrating how blended, pre-competitive funding converts high-risk discovery into investable, commercially scalable markets.2 Modernize regulatory and clinical end-points Stakeholders: Researchers, innovators, regulators, industry Many women’s health conditions, such as endometriosis, PCOS and menopause, lack standardized, validated end-points. This complicates trial design, lengthens study timelines and increases uncertainty in regulatory review, which then heightens investment risk. Establishing sex-specific and disease-relevant end-points offers the potential to improve trial design and strengthen predictability for investors. It is important to add the caveat that, without rigorous validation and consistent application, surrogate end-points can also introduce new risks – undermining payer confidence, clinical adoption and long-term market sustainability. Striking the right balance between accelerating innovation and maintaining robust safety and efficacy standards is therefore essential. When developed within clear guardrails, stronger, well-validated end-points can enhance confidence throughout the ecosystem, reducing risk, improving transparency and supporting innovation that delivers both clinical and financial impact. Proof point: In osteoporosis, acceptance of bone mineral density as a surrogate end-point for fracture risk reduced reliance on long-term outcomes and enabled faster and less costly approvals.112 Similarly, in rare diseases, agencies such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA) created tailored frameworks with surrogate end-points to accelerate approvals, which dramatically increased innovation and capital flows even in small patient populations.113 In the first quarter of 2024 alone, rare-disease pharmaceutical companies raised $7.1 billion in public equity and debt financing, up 307% from the same quarter in 2023,114 demonstrating investor confidence in the market.3 Expand reimbursement to create predictable revenue models Stakeholders: Policy-makers, payers, providers, innovators Innovation scales when reimbursement is clear and consistent. Today, many women’s health solutions operate in a patchwork reimbursement landscape, creating uncertainty around revenue streams, slowing business growth and limiting the ability of investors to accurately forecast risk or returns. Expanding reimbursement to cover evidence- based interventions, including preventive and digital tools, could reduce downstream costs while improving quality of life. In some cases, this will require updating standards of care to reflect emerging science; and in all cases, ensuring that reimbursement keeps pace. For innovators, clear reimbursement pathways not only drive adoption, they also determine valuation. Pricing power 4 Women’s Health Investment Outlook 32