32,000 Manitobans accessed birth control in 1st months of province's free contraceptive plan

Nearly 32,000 Manitobans accessed birth control in the first four months after the rollout of a free prescription contraceptives program, the province says.

Under the program, launched last October, eligible residents can access 60 commonly used birth control methods, including contraceptive pills, intrauterine devices (IUDs), hormonal implants and contraceptive injections.

Oral contraceptives — often referred to as "the pill" — were the most commonly dispensed product between Oct. 1 and Jan. 31, a government spokesperson told CBC Manitoba in an emailed statement, with 31,931 individuals getting a prescription dispensed under the plan over that period.

However, the spokesperson said the province could not provide any information on the number of people who opted for the pill compared to those who requested alternatives like IUDs and hormonal injections. 

When the plan, which was estimated to cost the province about $11 million annually, was announced last year, Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said it would save individuals hundreds of dollars, suggesting it could save up to $10,000 over a person's lifetime. 

"Costs should never be a barrier to you receiving the health care you need, and we all know that reproductive health care is health care," Asagwara said at an August news conference.

Manitoba's latest budget, released Thursday, promises another $7 million to include copper IUDs and Plan B emergency contraceptives — sometimes called the "morning-after pill" — under the free birth control plan. Previously, only hormonal IUDs were covered. 

While pills are the most common contraceptive, Kemlin Nembhard, executive director at Women's Health Clinic in Winnipeg, says the clinic has noticed an increase in requests for IUDs — a small, T-shaped, intrauterine device that can protect against pregnancy for nearly a decade. 

"The hormonal IUD can provide protection for up to eight years, so that's eight years where you're not having to think every day, 'did I take my pill?'" said Nembhard, adding IUDs can offer discreet protection for people in abusive situations who may be at risk if pills are discovered. 

"It really does provide this level of autonomy for somebody that sometimes a pill does not."

However, IUDs can cost up to $600, Nembhard says, making them more expensive upfront compared to $25 per month pills. 

"Now that we have this new program, it makes it more affordable for people to be able to do that," she said.

The clinic had been calling for an expansion of the provincial program to include copper IUDs and Plan B since the plan was announced, and Nembhard says she's happy to see some gaps filled in this week's budget. 

"It's great that the Manitoba government is doing this. Even though there's things I wish they would add to it, hands down, it's great," she said. "This is what democracy is about."

For decades, the Women's Health Clinic has offered free birth control to Winnipeggers and would like to see the government follow suit and add barrier methods like condoms, which also protect against sexually transmitted diseases, to its plan, said Nembhard. 

Despite some gaps, Haran Vijayanathan, the community health and wellness director at Klinic Community Health, said the program shows the NDP government is "taking steps in the right direction."

"We're able to offer more informed conversations so people can make informed decisions about the health care that they are receiving, and the contraceptives that might work for them in their particular situation," Vijayanathan said, adding he'd like to see vulnerable populations who might not have access to health cards included in the plan in the future.   

"When the cost is taken away from it, then options become more available."