Instant Birth Control Wins!

A program called Instant Birth Control (IBC) is one of three winners in an international competition to identify “Disruptive Innovations” — replicable, sustainable ideas that could change health care delivery forever. IBC provides access to birth control pills and emergency contraception online to women in Washington and Oregon through Planned Parenthood of the Columbia/Willamette (PPCW). Online voters selected their favorite ideas among 307 entries from 27 countries.

Instant Birth Control, which is a collaborative effort among five Planned Parenthood affiliates in Washington and Oregon, is hosted through the PPCW online health center. In April 2004, PPCW, which is located in Portland, became the first Planned Parenthood affiliate to offer access to daily-dose hormonal contraception online.

The competition was hosted by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which makes grants to improve health and health care, and by Changemakers and Ashoka, which seek out and support social entrepreneurs. The prize is $5,000, as well as an opportunity to apply for additional funding to expand the program beyond Oregon and Washington.