How Some States Make Effective Birth Control More Available

During her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in 2012, Michelle Moniz treated an expectant mother in her early 20s who wanted an intrauterine birth control device surgically inserted immediately after her delivery.

But because the state Medicaid agency didn’t use a separate billing code for the device, commonly known as an IUD, the hospital couldn’t accommodate the woman’s wishes. She would have to wait until her six-week, post-partum checkup to have the procedure to prevent unwanted pregnancies.

The woman didn’t show for that appointment. But it was not the last time Moniz saw her. A few months later the woman showed up pregnant again — and not by design.

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