Venus Williams is championing health insurance wins.
Multimillionaire Olympian Venus Williams faces a common issue—her health insurance is tied to her job.
Venus Williams returned to pro tennis at the Citi Open in D.C.—not just for glory, but to keep her health benefits.
Williams dazzled on July 22 with a straight-sets win over Peyton Stearns—her first tour-level singles victory since August 2023.
In a post-match interview, the millionaire athlete playfully joked that she came back to lock in her insurance benefits.
“I had to come back for the insurance,” Venus joked. “They told me I was on Cobra earlier this year, so I said, ‘I’ve got to get my benefits’—and started training.”
She shared that her regular doctor visits made health insurance a must, then turned to the D.C. crowd with a relatable moment: “You guys know what it’s like. I’m always at the doctor, so I need this insurance.”
Williams’s health challenges are well known. The 45-year-old recently shared that she had a myomectomy to remove fibroids and continues to manage Sjögren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disorder she was diagnosed with in 2011.
In an interview with Today, Williams revealed that her fibroids caused “extreme pain” that sometimes left her unable to move.
“We had a doubles final coming up, and I was just lying on the locker room floor saying, ‘It’s gonna pass. It’s gonna pass,’” she recalled. “Thankfully, Serena got the doctor—I was able to get up, eat, and start playing. Bad luck for our opponents.”
Williams says she’s speaking out because she didn’t realize how tough navigating reproductive health could be. Now, she’s raising awareness about fibroids and their severe symptoms.
“I’m sharing this because I was shocked I didn’t know what was happening to me,” she said. “No one should go through that.”
Even after her break from competition, Williams came back strong—serving over 110 mph and landing nine aces in her win over Stearns. She called the night “beautiful,” crediting the energy from fans, family, and NBA star Kevin Durant for powering her performance.
