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NEWS FROM POWER TO DECIDE
Shared Learning Collaborative Opportunity: Apply Today!
Power to Decide is convening a Shared Learning Collaborative of up to 10 place-based teams across the US that have cross-sectoral and youth representation. In teams of 4 and with support from our team at Power to Decide, place-based groups will build their capacity to implement and lead evidence-informed interventions that support reproductive well-being in their ‘place’. Over the three-year funding period, successful teams will be awarded up to $20,000, and active youth ambassadors will receive a $3,000 stipend. We highly encourage applicants from organizations that work with underserved populations and those that are in states hostile towards reproductive well-being. Visit our website to learn more about full eligibility requirements and apply today! Applications will be accepted through April 28, 2023 at 11:59 PM ET.
Our Newest Power Player
We’re committed to uplifting the many individuals championing the effort to support everyone’s reproductive well-being. This month’s Power Player is Aletha Y. Akers, Vice President for Research, Guttmacher Institute. Read her story.
Starting the Conversation About Pregnancy Desire
One Key Question® (OKQ) is a pregnancy desire screening tool that research shows dramatically increases patient satisfaction. Available online, the OKQ approach is patient-centered and focuses on equally supporting those who want to get pregnant, those who do not, and those who are ambivalent. Providers can continue the conversation with our Preconception and Contraception Pathways to Care Training, which takes that conversation one step further by teaching providers how to offer preconception and contraception counseling and care in a personalized, non-judgmental, and unbiased way. Both OKQ and Pathways to Care are available as stand-alone trainings. Begin your training journey today!
Be An Advocate
Are you interested in advancing contraceptive access in your community? The fact sheets, maps, research articles, videos, policy briefs, and other documents that make up our digital toolkit are intended to educate on the state of contraceptive access on a national and state-by-state level, and policy steps that states can take to improve access.
Our materials focus on four subjects: coverage for an extended supply of contraception, protecting contraceptive coverage, pharmacist prescribing of contraception, and telehealth policies that help facilitate access to contraception.
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POLICY UPDATES
Women’s Health Protection Act Reintroduced in the House
On March 30, Representatives Judy Chu (D-CA), Lois Frankel (D-FL), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), and Veronica Escobar (D-TX) reintroduced H.R. 12, the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) with nearly all House Democrats co-sponsoring the bill. WHPA would not only reinstate nationwide access to abortion care, it also would prevent medically unnecessary restrictions on abortion, such as mandatory waiting periods, ultrasounds, and biased counseling, all of which had been permitted prior to the Dobbs decision. See Power to Decide’s statement and contact your Representative to either thank them for supporting WHPA or urge them to do so.
President Biden Proposed New Budget
In March, President Biden released his budget request for fiscal year (FY) 2024. The budget proposes, among other things:
- Increasing funding for the Title X Family Planning Program (Title X) from its current level of $286.5 million to $512 million.
- Increasing funding for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) Program from its current level of $101 million to $111 million.
- Eliminating funding for discretionary Sexual Risk Avoidance (SRA, also known as abstinence only until marriage) program.
- Removing the harmful Hyde Amendment, a policy that blocks insurance coverage of abortion for people enrolled in Medicaid.
We are pleased to see the strong show of support for Title X and the TPP Program in the president’s budget proposal; read Power to Decide’s full statement to learn more. It’s important to remember the president’s budget is just the first step in the appropriations process; Congress ultimately decides what gets funded. For FY 2024, Power to Decide has requested that Congress provide $150 million for the TPP Program and $512 million for Title X. Take two minutes to urge your members of Congress to support these funding levels.
State Update
In March, Wyoming became the first state this year to pass a total abortion ban, which was in effect for approximately 48 hours before a Teton County District Court issued a temporary restraining order. Wyoming also became the first state to specifically pass a ban on medication abortion that would go into effect on July 1. This is in addition to the so-called trigger ban that Wyoming enacted in 2022 which was set to go into effect on July 27, before a district court issued a preliminary injunction. In addition to the ban on abortion, women face other barriers to reproductive health. This includes nearly 33,000 women of reproductive age with low incomes who lack reasonable access to the full range of contraceptive methods. Learn more from our Wyoming contraceptive access landscape fact sheet.
FDA Advisory Committee Reviews OTC Birth Control Pill Application
The first-ever application for an over-the-counter birth control pill is moving to the next step in the process after the FDA Advisory Committee rescheduled its hearing, which will take place on May 9 and 10. Support the effort to #FreeThePill by sharing written testimony by April 25 about what it would mean for you or your community to have birth control pills available on the shelf at your local drugstore. Learn more about other ways to make your voice heard by visiting the #FreeThePill Action Center.
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GENEROUS SUPPORT FROM OUR SPONSORS
Over the last year, we have watched the existing gaps in accessing reproductive and sexual health care expand exponentially. At Power to Decide, we believe in a world where everyone—no matter who they are or where they live—can decide if, when, and under what circumstances to get pregnant and have a child.
As the ongoing attacks on reproductive and sexual health care grow, we need the resources to help provide the information and resources so desperately needed by millions. Your gift will help us fund initiatives like AbortionFinder, BCBenefits, and Bedsider, as well as our essential policy work, which has only become more critical in 2023.
Will you join us in our mission to advance sexual and reproductive well-being for all and make a gift today?
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