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Abstract #167124

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Heike Thiel de Bocanegra, PhD, MPH, Director, UCSF Family PACT Program Support and Evaluation Bixby Center for Reproductive Health Research & Policy, University of California, San Francisco, PO Box 997413 MS 8400, San Francisco, CA 94143, 916-552-8793, Heike.Thiel@cdph.ca.gov

There continue to be disparities in the gains made in recent years in reducing unintended pregnancies across race/ethnic groups. Lack of insurance, lower incomes, and language limitations combine to create barriers against access to effective forms of contraception. Over twenty states provide enhanced access to family planning services through 1115 Medicaid family planning waivers. Traditionally, these publicly funded family planning services have been provided by governmental and non-profit organizations. One innovative feature of California's family planning waiver, Family PACT, is the creation of a broad provider network which includes private clinician providers such as physician groups, solo practitioners, and certified nurse practitioners among other private entities. An analysis of provider and client enrollment data shows that private providers are more likely to be physically located within specific communities of color and to serve a greater proportion of non-English speaking clients than public providers. Over the last five years, the program has increased the number of African Americans served by 15% and the number of Asian clients by 40%. Private providers serve clients with larger family sizes (2.8 vs. 2.1), higher parity (1.4 vs. 0.8), and more clients who report their primary language as Spanish (74% vs. 37%). The inclusion of providers who can meet the needs of a culturally and linguistically diverse population is thus a crucial element towards increasing access to reproductive health care and reducing unintended birth rates across racial/ethnic groups.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the advantages and challenges of a public/private partnership to improve access to care for minority and immigrant populations.
• Name two methods on how the progress in implementing a public/partnership can be monitored.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No
Any institutionally-contracted trials related to this submission?

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

• Slides (pdf) or Handout