IUD Insertion Increased After Trump's Election, Insurance Concerns Rise

The number of women who have long-acting reversible contraception significantly increased within one month after Donald Trump assumed the U.S. presidency, leading observers to theorize that it could be in response to his negative comments against the Affordable Care Act. During his campaign, Trump had been vocal about his plans to abolish the ACA, which included coverage and copayment for certain birth control methods.

The study, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, observed women aged 18 to 45 years old who had commercial insurance 30 days before and after the Nov. 8, 2016 election. It also looked into the data of the same people 30 days before and after Nov. 8, 2015, for comparative purposes.

It found that the number of women who had either implants or IUDs inserted rose 21.6 percent 30 days after Trump was elected president, from 13.4 per 100,000 females 30 days before to 16.3 per 100,000. For comparison, the number was 12.9 thirty days before Nov. 8 of the previous year and then 13.7 thirty days after. The research concluded that the high rise could be a reflection of insurance fears as the Trump administration threatens to remove contraceptive coverage during its term.

As of this writing, ACA remains in effect, though the government issued two rulings in November 2018 that allowed employers to reject contraceptive coverage to their female employees. In January 2019, however, a district court judge in Pennsylvania issued an injunction nationwide to stop these changes from being implemented. Without commercial insurance, the cost of an IUD would be upwards of $1,300.

MarketWatch reported that women and clinics have started to stockpile contraceptive supplies shortly after those two rulings were announced last year. Brooklyn-based sexual health activist Emma Kaywin had even started accepting online funding donations to purchase Plan B pills for those who cannot afford it should the new rules be finalized.

The study published on JAMA only accounted for females with commercial insurance and did not include data from those with private insurance plans and without insurance at all.