时间:2025-04-04 10:05:19 来源:网络整理编辑:探索
The Trump administration is doing everything it can to undermine Planned Parenthood's law-abiding, s
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
Make money or go to Stanford? Katie Ledecky is left with an unfair choice.2025-04-04 09:53
Best Apple AirTag deal: 20% off Apple AirTags at Amazon2025-04-04 09:06
Tesla Model Y owner adds DIY solar roof to his car2025-04-04 08:33
'True Detective: Night Country' and the Dyatlov Pass incident, explained2025-04-04 08:31
Mom discovers security cameras hacked, kids' bedroom livestreamed2025-04-04 08:25
SpaceX responds to unfair dismissal charges, calls watchdog unconstitutional2025-04-04 08:17
A university is offering lessons from hologram professors2025-04-04 07:21
Everything announced at Samsung Unpacked, including Galaxy AI and Galaxy Ring2025-04-04 07:19
Donald Trump's tangled web of Russian influence2025-04-04 07:18
Mozilla Monitor will attempt to stop data brokers from selling your personal info on the internet2025-04-04 07:18
Snapchat is about to explode in popularity, report says2025-04-04 10:04
iOS 17.1.2 features: What's coming to your iPhone?2025-04-04 09:55
How 'True Detective: Night Country' pulled off its most WTF moment2025-04-04 09:50
Elisabeth Moss and Steven Knight reveal secrets behind FX's 'The Veil'2025-04-04 09:27
Mom discovers security cameras hacked, kids' bedroom livestreamed2025-04-04 09:15
GTA 6 leaks: Release date, rumors, and more2025-04-04 09:04
Meet OpenAI's Sora, a wild AI text2025-04-04 08:39
Memphis vs. TAMU basketball livestreams: Game time, streaming deals, and more2025-04-04 08:11
More than half of women in advertising have faced sexual harassment, report says2025-04-04 08:09
Best fitness smartwatch deals: Save up to 50% on Fitbit and Google Pixel Watches2025-04-04 08:03