| Contraception in the USA Jul 16th 2012, 09:36 Why Obamacare may help a lot and the difficulties for poor women http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...birth-control/ Quote:
A woman's choice may come down to her wallet: The price of birth control varies dramatically.
Just the pill has a huge range, from $9 a month for generics to $90 a month for some of the newest brands, plus a yearly doctor's visit for the prescription.
Want a once-a-month option? The patch or ring could run you $55 monthly.
Even more reliable are so-called long-acting types, those IUDs or implants that can last years but can cost $600 to nearly $1,000 for the doctor to insert.
That's if you don't have insurance that covers at least some of the tab — although many women do. And if those prices are too much, crowded public clinics offer free or reduced-price options. But it might take a while to get an appointment...
...A woman's choice may come down to her wallet: The price of birth control varies dramatically.
Just the pill has a huge range, from $9 a month for generics to $90 a month for some of the newest brands, plus a yearly doctor's visit for the prescription.
Want a once-a-month option? The patch or ring could run you $55 monthly.
Even more reliable are so-called long-acting types, those IUDs or implants that can last years but can cost $600 to nearly $1,000 for the doctor to insert.
That's if you don't have insurance that covers at least some of the tab — although many women do. And if those prices are too much, crowded public clinics offer free or reduced-price options. But it might take a while to get an appointment...
...About 55 percent of local health departments offer some family planning services, according to the National Association of County & City Health Officials. Many of those receive federal Title X funding, which means they can offer contraception on a sliding fee scale. The poorest women may get it free, while others may pay full price or somewhere in between.
There are cheaper generic pills. Peipert says there's little difference between them and pricey new brand-name versions like Yaz.
But some women go through a number of brands before finding one that doesn't cause uncomfortable side effects, says Sarah Brown of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. Her organization operates a website, http://www.bedsider.org, that details options along with the price range.
"Not every woman can use generic pills, by any means," Brown says. "Do we say to people, 'Just go get generic cardiac medicines. Hope that works out for you?'"...
...Just last week, she saw a woman whose heart condition could make another pregnancy life-threatening but who couldn't afford the IUD that Dragoman wanted to prescribe, and chose a cheaper option.
If a family's struggling financially, "sometimes contraception is one of the first things to fall off," Dragoman says.
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