Access to reproductive care, including birth control options, has long been part of policymakers’ reform agendas. As states have recently grappled with health care provider shortages and pandemic-induced social distancing, many policymakers are increasingly turning to innovative health care delivery models like pharmacist-prescribed birth control.
As of 2020, over 1.3 million Kentuckians lived in a designated primary care Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA). Kentucky also ranks 13th for most HPSAs in the country. For many, this means health care services, like primary care, are much more difficult to come by, as the ratio of patients to providers is much higher than in non-HPSA areas. This problem is usually exacerbated in rural or low-income areas.
Further, 2010 data shows that 47 percent of pregnancies in Kentucky were unplanned, and that 52 out of every 1,000 teens in Kentucky became pregnant in 2013. Both of these rates have been in decline around the country, including in Kentucky, and it is recognized that better contraceptive access has played a major role in reducing unplanned and teen pregnancies over time.
In recent years, the pharmacy access model has spread to 18 states plus Washington, D.C. since 2015. The pharmacy access model increases access to methods of hormonal contraception, leading to fewer unintended pregnancies and, in turn, fewer abortions.
Unintended pregnancies and the health care costs incurred from them are also costly to taxpayers. In 2010, the federal and state governments spent almost $378 million on these health care costs in Kentucky. The pharmacy access model can reduce these costs by reducing the number of unintended pregnancies.
