Where Can Women Obtain Long-Acting Reversible Contraception?

In 2008, 36 million U.S. women needed effective contraception. Long-acting reversible contraceptives are particularly effective, and ready access to such methods might help lower unintended pregnancy rates (which have remained at 49% of all pregnancies for many years despite efforts such as Title X, a federally funded program for providing family planning services to those in need). To evaluate contraceptive accessibility, the CDC mailed surveys to 2000 office-based obstetrics/gynecology, family medicine, and adolescent medicine practices and to 2000 Title X clinics. The questionnaire asked whether specific reversible methods were provided to clients onsite, by prescription, by referral, or not at all. In all, 635 practices and 1368 Title X…