Next steps for America's family planning program

As part of a session entitled, “Reproductive Health: The Road Back to Science,” this presentation will review the latest data on the national family planning effort, including the number of clients served and the impact of the services provided. Together, the nationwide network of family planning centers and the private physicians who serve Medicaid enrollees provide contraceptive services to millions of American women. Without this investment, levels of unintended pregnancy and abortion, for all women, for teens and for poor women would be significantly higher than they are now. These services make an important contribution to improved maternal and child health—as well as the well-being of women, their families and their communities—by reducing teen pregnancy, improving birth spacing and enabling women to quickly access prenatal care when they do become pregnant. Moreover, these services give millions of American women an entry point into the health care system. The national family planning effort is at a critical juncture. Although financing for the effort has undergone a dramatic change in the last decade, the effort is operating with an antiquated policy framework. A new framework that would rationalize the emerging relationship between the Title X program and Medicaid in a way that leverages the unique strengths of these two fundamentally different programs is needed to enable the effort to confront looming challenges.