Contraceptive Technology Update – February 1, 2023

Fully Funded Access to Contraception Can Change an Entire Population’s Lives

The results of Colorado’s contraception expansion experiment are in, showing a dramatic improvement in women’s lives during the period in which Title X programs were fully funded through a grant. The Colorado Family Planning Initiative profoundly affected adolescent girls and young adults, resulting in a 6% to 12% increase in women obtaining their college degrees compared to earlier cohorts that did not benefit from the expanded contraception program, according to study results.

Social Media Trends Are Moving Against Contraception Access

Reproductive health advocates and providers should be aware of a disturbing social media trend that appears to be moving in the same direction as the early anti-Roe efforts in the 1980s. Decades of attacks on abortion changed enough people’s opinions on abortion to lay the groundwork for the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision.

FDA’s Change to Emergency Contraception Labeling Is Good News for Women

In a move that expands access to contraception, the FDA announced that it was changing packaging labels for Plan B, the emergency contraceptive pill that is available over the counter. The box no longer will carry the baseless claim that the pill may prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the womb.

Telehealth for Contraception Works, Increasing Access for Patients

Contraceptive care providers and staff wish to sustain telehealth long past the COVID-19 pandemic era in which telehealth was more widely used, according to a recent study of telehealth in Illinois.

Premenstrual Anxiety, Mood Swings Are Common Among Women Worldwide

New research shows that women worldwide experience unpleasant premenstrual symtoms, including food cravings (85%) and mood swings or anxiety (64%). Other reported symptoms included fatigue, irritability, bloating, and breast tenderness.

Potentially Wide-Ranging Effects of Abortion Bans on Women’s Health and Safety

In June 2022, the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturned the constitutional right to abortion care. Data are not yet available on whether medical schools and residency programs in abortion-ban states will teach students about abortion or provide any opportunities for hands-on experience with abortion care. Or they could be taught abortion procedures without actual human patients. Media reports indicate that medical students are using papayas in place of a cervix to learn the procedure in some cities.

Pregnancy in Abortion-Ban States Is Becoming More Dangerous

Maternal care and delivery services already are lacking for many pregnant people in the United States, especially in states that have enacted the most restrictive abortion bans nationally. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent healthcare labor shortages resulted in more hospitals ending maternal care and delivery. The overturn of Roe v. Wade likely will worsen this already worrisome situation as fewer ED physicians will be trained and experienced in performing an abortion procedure — even to save a pregnant patient’s life.