Patient requests for long-term birth control on rise after Trump reelection
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios
Patients are flooding Planned Parenthood phone lines in Massachusetts with questions after President-elect Trump's victory.
- Can they renew or replace their long-term contraceptives early? Will they still have access to birth control? What about medication abortion?
The big picture: Requests for long-term birth control are on the rise nationwide since Election Day, even in Massachusetts, where protections for abortion and contraceptives are enshrined in state law.
- As the new Trump administration is taking shape, questions remain about whether the Food and Drug Administration and other agencies will overhaul regulations around abortion access.
Zoom in: Patients with contraceptive implants and IUDs, which can remain in the body for three to 10 years, are asking Boston-area clinics if they can replace the devices early because they don't know if they will be covered by insurance or available under Trump, doctors say.
- Some patients are asking to get their IUDs replaced as early as two to three years before they're due to be switched out, says Deborah Bartz, a gynecologist for Mass General Brigham.
- They're also asking questions about what will remain protected in Massachusetts.
What they're saying: "We don't know what's going to happen, but our patients have seen what has happened across the country and they are appropriately nervous," says Luu Ireland, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts.
Flashback: The first Trump administration implemented restrictions on Title X, the national family planning program.
- A new rule barred any provider getting Title X funding from mentioning abortion to patients, even if the patient asked about it.
- Seven states (including Massachusetts) and Planned Parenthood dropped out of the Title X network, or some 1,300 health centers, Ruth Dawson of the Guttmacher Institute told The 19th News in 2021.
- The Biden administration undid the rule, allowing Title X providers to refer patients to abortion providers.
Context: Trump's rhetoric on abortion rights has shifted often, contributing to confusion about what restrictions he'd support.
- He has boasted about overturning Roe v. Wade and signaled support for banning abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, but also has said abortion policy should be left to the states.
Reality check: Updates to Massachusetts law in recent years have bolstered protections for reproductive rights and will remain in place as the Trump administration enters office.
- Those updates include codifying abortion protections into law before the Dobbs decision and shielding doctors working with out-of-state abortion patients.
- These updates also protect access to gender-affirming health care and contraception, Ireland says.