For many women, going to their healthcare provider to obtain birth control can be a hassle, but a new wave of apps is seeking to simplify the process, providing prescriptions without requiring a visit to the physicians office, reports The New York Times.
There are at least six such apps offering birth control prescriptions, made by both private companies and nonprofits, including Planned Parenthood.
Women using the apps enter their health information either online or by video. Physicians review the health information and write the prescriptions. Some services send the prescription to a local pharmacy for the woman to pick up, and others send the drugs to the woman's home. While all the services offer birth control pills, some prescribe patches, rings and emergency contraceptives, according to the report.
Some of the apps accept insurance, and some charge a fee. One app called Lemonaid charges $15 for a physician to review a woman's medical information and send a prescription for birth control pills to a local pharmacy, according to the report.
The apps are essentially a form of telemedicine and must comply with related regulations. Many of the platforms also have age controls, typically more conservative than required by law.
The apps are gaining foothold in an era where political tension is a significant barrier to access to contraception. These apps exist "beneath the political radar…with little of the furor that has come to be expected in issues involving reproductive health," according to the report.
Public health experts see the potential for such apps to reduce the rate of unintended pregnancies — which is currently near 40 percent — and the rate of abortions, according to the report.
And women are demanding this type of access. Hans Gangeskar, co-founder of one of these apps called Nurx, told NYT they are receiving more traffic than they can handle.
One woman, Jill Atilano, 39, uses Lemonaid and commented on its simplicity and the time savings it affords here.
"It's been, for years, going through these nonstop hoops of fire to get birth control," Ms. Atilano told NYT. "If I went through my normal physician and the referrals, I would be six months pregnant before I would get my hands on it."
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