Health and family planning providers in the US have reported a significant increase in the number of women seeking long-acting reversible contraception popularly referred to as LARCs since Trump was elected president. Women’s health advocacy groups have also reported an increase in donations during the same period.
These numbers have been blamed on the fear that women have over how the Donald Trump-Mike Pence administration may affect their insurance and access to affordable family planning and birth control. The administration is believed to be planning to limit access to birth control.
LARCs to Outlast a Trump Presidency
Healthcare providers have reported concerns from women who get reproductive health assistance from federal programs as well. Most uninsured people will normally depend on federal programs such as Title X for family planning.
Concerned women are thus seeking LARCs because they are very efficient and can last for three, five, or even 10 years depending on the IUD. This means that those who get it won’t have to need it again before the Trump presidency is over, hence the need to stock up.
Healthcare givers re-emphasise the importance of reproductive and sexual health for the overall health of a community. This calls for improved prevention, awareness, and education. They warn that by limiting access to reproductive services, the Trump administration would be causing great damage to public health.
The fears by various women are not indeed unfounded as there have been reports that Price supported a legislation that would ban federal funds for Planned Parenthood. His claim is that some clinics use brutal abortion practices. If the legislation is put into effect, it could pose a grave threat to women’s health and could undo decades of women’s health progress.
Over 70% Increase in Number of Birth Control Appointments
Dr. Raegan McDonald-Mosley, the chief medical officer at Planned Parenthood stated that they had seen an unexpected rise in questions about access to healthcare and birth control since the elections. The numbers have risen both online and in their health centers.
According to the doctor, Planned Parenthood saw a significant increase in the number appointments for birth control in the first week after the election. The increase in appointments was nearly tenfold especially in people wanting IUDs. The higher-than-average numbers continue to surge.
In Chicago, for instance, the Planned Parenthood clinics in Aurora reported a whopping 75% increase in their online appointments for people seeking annual exams a week after the presidential election. Birth control online appointments also increased by 56% in the first eight days, compared to eight days before the election.
The Affordable Care Act, which the Trump administration seeks to change, gives thousands of women access to several different contraceptive methods. When it comes to the now popular IUDs, uninsured women get to save $500 to $1,000.
The reaction to stock up on contraceptives before the Trump government make any changes with a negative effect on reproductive health is quite understandable. Hopefully, the administration will come up with a legislation that protects all parties involved in order to make the decades fight for women’s health worth it.