Recorded presentation

Rebecca Koladycz, MA and Amanda Claremon, MPH. International Planned Parenthood Federation/Western Hemisphere Region, 120 Wall Street, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10005-3902, 212-214-0219, aclaremon@ippfwhr.org

In order to increase young people’s access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, many organizations offer discounted services; however, often discounts are not based upon empirical evidence about what youth can pay. At the same time, organizations face pressure to increase sustainability and many find this particularly challenging in relation to youth programs. Willingness to pay (WTP) studies allow managers to simulate price changes and thus facilitate a balance between competing demands of access and sustainability. While WTP studies have been conducted with adults, there is limited data available for young people.

International Planned Parenthood Federation/Western Hemisphere Region (IPPF/WHR) affiliates in Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Peru implemented WTP surveys to test the hypothesis that young people can pay more for SRH services.

Participants designed WTP surveys based on existing models that gathered data on demographics, ability to pay, willingness to pay more, and satisfaction with services received. Surveys were conducted at multiple clinic sites after youth received services.

Results show that the majority of youth were willing to pay somewhat more for services, indicating that prices could be increased to contribute to program sustainability. The methodology enabled affiliates to identify the profile of young clients that would be lost with pricing increases: not surprisingly, those with more ability to pay and those most satisfied with services were willing to pay more. With an understanding of which clients would be lost with price increases, affiliates determined more effective strategies for ensuring access for those youth while increasing overall program sustainability.

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