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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 8, 2004)
BY MELINDA YOUNG Worry-Free Sex Funding extended for Oregon’s Family Planning Expansion Project. F or thousands of UO students, there is one incomparably good reason to brave the student Health Center even on its busiest days — free birth control. The UO Health Center is one of more than 120 statewide providers that offers free birth control and family planning resources to women and men who otherwise couldn’t afford it, thanks to Oregon’s Family Planning Expansion Project (FPEP), which reimburses the providers for these services. Despite its importance, funding for FPEP, a five-year “demonstration project,” was originally slated to end this December. But last month, the federal gov- ernment renewed FPEP through October 2006. Even an administration that’s presently waging war against family planning pro- grams cannot dispute FPEP’s benefits: The savings are substantial, the social impacts far- reaching. At sites where FPEP is offered, the UO Health Center, LCC, Planned Parenthood or the Public Health Department, clients go through the same process: After scheduling an appoint- ment, they merely fill out an eligibility form, go through a height/weight/blood pressure check, and have an informative conversation with a typically pleasant nurse practitioner. Eligibility requirements include being a U.S. citizens and for Oregon residents, hav- ing an income within 185 percent of the fed- eral poverty level (a single person with an an- nual income less than $16,613 or a family of four with less than $34,040). As long as they meet eligibility require- ments, clients receive the kind of birth con- trol they prefer, such as pills, diaphragms and condoms (including expensive methods like Depo-Provera) at no cost. In most cases, they can walk out with a supply of contraceptives that day. On-the-spot allocation of contraception is a cornerstone of FPEP. Jeanne Atkins, FPEP program manager, emphasizes the impor- tance of not making clients apply for contra- ceptives only to make them wait several weeks to receive them. “Because,” she says, “people don’t necessarily wait until they can get birth control to have sex.” $1.75 In addition to birth control and family planning resources, eligible women receive free annual exams and pregnancy tests through FPEP and eligible men may also re- ceive family planning counseling and serv- ices. ‘It is no small accomplishment that Oregon received this renewal.’ – Marilyn Helton, Planned Parenthood Because FPEP is a program specifically geared toward preventing unintended preg- nancies, resources are allotted on the premise that clients want to avoid this particular situa- tion (safer sex, though, is an added benefit). THE VISION The vision for FPEP was born seven years ago when the Oregon Legislature joined forces with several public health departments and family planning programs to reduce the high rates of teen pregnancies in the state. The visionaries knew the cost of providing free birth control would be less than the short- term and long-term costs of Medicaid-funded births. The people involved — then-Gov. John Kitzhaber, Bill Sheppard, CEO of the re- gional Planned Parenthood, and Atkins — began drafting the proposal to the federal Medicaid office. FPEP was proposed as a waiver project similar to the Oregon Health Plan. Like the OHP, it would reach economi- cally disadvantaged people who may not qualify for Medicaid. The goals cited in the proposal were to decrease unintended preg- nancies among teenagers and women of all ages, to expand family planning services, and to save significant dollars. “It was an exciting opportunity,” says Atkins. “But meeting all of the requirements of the federal Medicaid office for this kind of waiver was a bureaucratic challenge.” So challenging, in fact, that it took almost IT’S CHEAPER HERE ALL DAY EVERY DAY! FEATURING ENTERTAINMENT BY THE CHEERY FIREPLACE TUES. 8-11PM – DAN HENSON • WEDS. 8-11PM – JOHN CRIDER THUR. 8-11PM – TIM PATRICK • FRI. & SAT. 8-11PM – ACE LUXO THIS FRIDAY 1/9 SPECIAL GUEST BARTENDER GARY B. OLSEN ORIGINAL FOUNDER OF THE PAD & DOC’S PAD Peabody's PUB MON-FRI 11:00AM-11:00PM • SAT 4:00PM-2:00AM 444 E. 3RD • 484-2927 • South end of Ferry St. Bridge 10 JANUARY 8, 2004 two years to write. The work put into the complicated and lengthy waiver application would ultimately pay off though. In late 1998, the approval from the federal Medicaid office came through. “We were celebrating in the clinic hall- ways the minute approval from the feds was received in the fall of 1998,” says Marilyn Helton, patient services co-director of Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon. Since that time, Helton says, “We have seen nearly 400 percent growth since FPEP began in early 1999. We have built new clin- ics in the Bethel/Danebo neighborhood and on Q Street in Springfield, purchased larger buildings, expanded hours of operation, and hired many additional staff.” Family planning clinics and health centers across the state cite similar expansion of their services and programs. Thus the “expansion” in Family Planning Expansion Project. In constantly soliciting feedback through surveys and focus groups, FPEP employees like Uebel have tailored the program to fulfill clients’ requests. Some changes seen over the past five years include shortening waiting times at clinics; providing educational mate- rials directed toward male partners, espe- cially in the Latino communities; and provid- ing additional cultural competency training to service providers. Renewal of FPEP through October 2006 is cause for celebration for employees, providers and clients alike. “In the face of such a conservative administration and polit- ical climate, it is no small accomplishment that Oregon received this renewal,” says Helton. Until now, many providers were waiting in the wings, unsure if they would be able to continue offering services beyond December. The UO Health Center was urging clients to take care of their birth control needs by the end of the year. Now they can rest easy — at least for another three years. MILLIONS IN SAVINGS More than 10,000 unintended pregnan- cies among Medicaid subscribers were averted during FPEP’s first two years alone. (This was measured by comparing the num- ber of actual unplanned pregnancies to the number of expected unplanned pregnancies.) With the typical cost of a Medicaid birth esti- mated at $4,875, that’s an estimated gross of $64.9 million in savings. Over the past five years, thousands of women and men have come to rely on FPEP’s services to help prevent unplanned pregnancies. Arwen Ungar, a UO senior, has used FPEP through Eugene’s Planned Parenthood since she was 16. Ungar received free birth control based on her own income, not that of her parents. Through the inherent privacy FPEP offers, Ungar was given the freedom to make decisions on her own. Understanding the needs of clients is of utmost importance to FPEP staff. They know that many people have been misinformed or have had bad experiences with birth control in the past and that many welfare recipients have been treated with judgment and conde- scension in the past. “The ultimate goal is to make sure that every FPEP-qualified person receives the in- formation and care that they deserve,” says Leslie Uebel, FPEP social marketing coordi- nator. LOOKING FOR PERMANENCE FPEP employees and providers intend to continue their quest to constantly improve the program. At a statewide level, the primary focus will be on reaching out to clients who may not have had access up to this point. (Though, unfortunately because of citizen- ship requirements, this does exclude some populations that could greatly benefit from FPEP.) At the provider level, programs like Planned Parenthood and the UO Health Center are looking for more ways to expand their services. The greater hope is that FPEP may some day obtain permanent status. Clinics through- out the state are keenly aware of Marilyn Helton’s observation — that until such a pro- gram becomes permanent and no longer deemed a “demonstration project,” it could disappear. After all, as long as people continue to be sexually active, the need for this program will exist. Says Jeanne Atkins, “We are just begin- ning to see the impact on unintended preg- nancies that such an effort [as FPEP] can pro- duce.” For more information about FPEP (including county programs), visit www.dhs.state.or.us/publichealth/fp/about.cfm ew R iverpark IN • • • • • HOME CARE Bath Visits Meal Prep & Shopping Personal Care Assistants Housekeeping/Laundry Exercise Excellence . . . with a personal touch For information about our complete In Home Care Services, call 345-2853 www.touchmark.com
