Your podcast discovery platform
Curious minds select the most fascinating podcasts from around the world. Discover hand-piqd audio recommendations on your favorite topics.
piqer for: Health and Sanity Boom and bust Climate and Environment
Melissa Hutsell is an award-winning freelance journalist with a deep rooted passion for both community and international journalism. She was born and raised in Northern California, and has lived, studied, worked, and traveled in more 20 different countries. Melissa holds a Master's degree in Global Journalism from City University London, as well as degrees in Journalism and Globalization from Humboldt State University. Though she covers various topics as both a writer and editor, she specializes in business and cannabis journalism.
Birth Control Apps Take Aim At “Contraception Deserts”
Claire Hammons lives in Llano, Texas—a small town with a population of 3,000, one doctor in town, and no clinics nearby. Getting health care is not easy, and the medicine Hammons needs most is birth control.
Birth control pills help to keep her symptoms of endometriosis at bay, Hammons describes. Without them, she’s in pain. When she lost her health insurance, she found she could not afford the out of pocket fees to see a doctor, or pick up prescriptions. Then, she found NURX, a birth control delivery app.
The app (which delivers birth control pills, rings and patches) was a godsend for Hammons, because at an average of $15 per one month’s supply, she could afford it.
NURX is now available in 18 states. It’s especially popular in “contraception deserts,” or places – like Llano – that lack easy access to women’s health services, reports the article.
Texas is a huge market for apps like NURX, said Brook Randal, emergency medical physician with the company. In 2013 the state passed legislation, which closed nearly half of all clinics in Texas that performed abortions, and other necessary services to low-income women.
While many of the app’s users are from such regions, Randal notes that women come from all backgrounds, and use the app for different reasons.
Rachel Ralph is another example. Ralph leads a busy life in the California Bay Area, and coordinates her life via apps. Even in cities, women like Ralph must drive an hour or more for an appointment – which can be costly. She found birth control delivery apps to save money, and time – significant for someone working 12-hour days.
Stacey Pogue, health policy analyst for the Center for Public Policy Priorities, noted that “Apps like NURX that give women access to at least some types of contraceptives are definitely helpful, but they aren't a comprehensive solution.”
