Kanisha

I would not have been able to afford birth control, which I needed for a medical reason, without Planned Parenthood. I was grateful to have an adult who validated what was happening in my life and who treated me with respect.

I was nervous the first time I went to Planned Parenthood for an appointment. I was 16, and the only doctor I’d ever been to was my pediatrician — but this time I needed a reproductive health care provider to discuss my unusually painful, heavy, and long periods. They were so severe that would even pass out at school.

Everyone at Planned Parenthood was so helpful and knowledgeable. There was no judgment at all. I was grateful to have an adult who listened to me and validated what was happening in my life and who treated me with respect.

To control my periods, my Planned Parenthood provider recommended that I try the birth control pill. I experienced side effects, so then my provider recommended the Depo-Provera shot. Once again, I experienced side effects. Therefore, when I learned about the IUD at age 18, I asked if I could be eligible — and was thrilled that I was.

Unfortunately, my insurance did not cover the IUD, and this was before the Affordable Care Act, with its no copay birth control benefit, was in place. But Planned Parenthood offered me affordable care — just as it does to millions of women each year. Planned Parenthood provided birth control services and information to over two million patients last year and provided emergency contraception kits to over one-and-a-half million additional patients.

I would not have been able to afford birth control, which I needed for a medical reason, without Planned Parenthood. That’s why it’s so important to have birth control without copays — so that women don’t face another barrier in accessing the care they need.