Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #114715

Lourdes A. Rivera, JD, National Health Law Program, 2639 S. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90034, 310-204-6010, rivera@healthlaw.org

Low income women face a variety of barriers when they want to use emergency contraception and other contraceptive methods. Prescription status with its requirement that women first visit a clinic or other provider of reproductive health care services creates an obvious barrier, as the issues of time, transportation and cost faced by all women are exacerbated for low income women. The FDA has been asked to approve non-prescription status for emergency contraception, which must be used within a narrow window of time to be effective. Some proponents have argued that non-prescription status for oral contraceptives and other hormonal contraceptive methods would improve women's access. Would dropping the prescription requirement result in easier access? Would dropping the prescription requirement result in worse health outcomes? Is the answer different for EC than for other methods? The author will discuss the implications for low-income women.

Learning Objectives:

By the end of the presentation, the participant will be able to (
• describe multiple possible barriers to access, including but not limited to prescription status; (
• identify possible increased direct costs for low-income women, including the loss of subsidized services; and (
• describe what role family planning visits play in low-income women's access to routine health care.

Keywords: Women's Health, Family Planning

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation