The Trump administration is doing everything it can to undermine Planned Parenthood's law-abiding, science-based reproductive health services. But Planned Parenthood has a powerful weapon in its arsenal: tech that increases access to care.
On Wednesday, Planned Parenthood announced that it had expanded its Planned Parenthood Direct app to functioning in 27 states, and that it will be available in all 50 states in 2020. The app lets users order birth control, get a prescription for Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) antibiotics, and schedule appointments at a Planned Parenthood clinic.
"As politicians across the country try to restrict or block access to critical reproductive and sexual health care, the Planned Parenthood Direct app is just one part of the work we do to ensure that more people can get the care they need, no matter where they are," Alexis McGill Johnson, acting president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement.
In August, Planned Parenthood pulled out of the government's Title X funding program, which provides financial support for reproductive health services. Under the Trump administration's new rules, Title X funding recipients would not be allowed to refer patients to abortion services. Rather than capitulate to the anti-abortion agenda, Planned Parenthood forewent the $60 million in funding it would have received had it stayed in the program.
Planned Parenthood says the app is one of the ways that it is expanding care at a time when funding and access for women's health is shrinking across the country. This is part of a larger telehealth trend, in which doctors and app makers alike are utilizing technology to help reach rural, low-income, or other people who may not have access to healthcare.
Birth control and UTI prescriptions are also a great use case for this sort of tech. In the app, users go through the same questions they would in a doctor's office. Then clinicians assess what medication is right for them. That makes sense for an ailment like a UTI, since prescriptions to treat a UTI are just antibiotics, and waiting for a doctor's visit to treatment can be agony.
Birth control similarly does not necessarily require an exam beyond the standard questions, and expanding access is an important step to preventing unwanted pregnancy. The app doesn't take insurance (other birth control delivery apps, like Nurx and Pill Club, do), but out-of-pocket birth control can cost as low as $20 for a three month supply.
Planned Parenthood Direct is the result of two app pilot programs the organization originally launched in 2014 and 2015. The change today expands access to 27 states and the District of Columbia (check to see whether it's available in your state). Planned Parenthood also runs a chatbot for questions about reproductive health called Roo, a chat/text program, and other digital tools making reproductive healthcare and information accessible to as many people as possible.
Trump and his anti-uterine party may be living in the stone age, but at least Planned Parenthood is building for the future.
TopicsActivismHealth
(责任编辑：探索)
Felix the cat just raised £5000 for charity because she's the hero we all need
How to masturbate (and learn more about yourself while you're at it)
How to use Waze and Google Maps to find cheaper gas
Aaron Sorkin's 'Being the Ricardos' is fine enough, but never dazzles: Review
Singapore rolls out videoFiji's men's rugby sevens team has made history by defeating Great Britain and claiming the country'
...[详细]What we bought in January 2022: Dog clothes, people clothes, and more
If you follow Mashable Shopping's coverage, you know that we live to bring you the best product reco
...[详细]How to cast your iPhone to your TV
Have you ever started watching a video on your iPhone and said to yourself, "This is a cinematic mas
...[详细]Instagram will now show suspected hate speech lower in your Feed
Instagram has announced it will now show potential hate speech lower down in your feed, lulling you
...[详细]Xiaomi accused of copying again, this time by Jawbone
Imitation is not always the best form of flattery. 。 SEE ALSO:Xiaomi's MacBook Air clone is called, w
...[详细]How to masturbate (and learn more about yourself while you're at it)
I was introduced to the concept of masturbation at eight years old. I would wrap my legs around one
...[详细]The 1619 Project's 'Born on the Water' is the book all American children need
Picture yourself as a Black elementary school student who was just assigned a project to trace your
...[详细]Everyone could have won 'Squid Game' hopscotch, and that's just bad game design
Welcome toFix It, our series examining projects we love — save for one tiny change we wish we
...[详细]One of the most controversial power struggles in media comes to a close
One of the world's biggest media companies has been embroiled in a complex personal and professional
...[详细]'The Matrix Awakens' demo for Unreal Engine 5 can be pre
"What is real?" is a pretty tough question when you really dig into it, but we can share with you on
...[详细]There's a big piece of fake chicken stuck to this phone case
At long last, 'copypasta' and 'air fryer' have been added to the dictionary
