This program is open to men, women and teens and provides not only contraception but also treatment of conditions which could be due to sexually transmitted diseases. Natural family planning and fertility counseling is also covered.
To be eligible, patients may not be permanently sterilized (tubal ligation, vasectomy, hysterectomy, etc.) Patients whose family income is less than the federal poverty level are eligible for examinations, tests and treatment. Patients whose family income is under 250% of the poverty level may receive care which is discounted. Even uninsured patients above that income level may benefit -- although they have to pay the full fee for the initial family planning visit each year, they may still save money since the fee for tests and treatments are based on the discounted costs negotiated by the family planning council. The charge for an initial visit is determined by the family planning council and is the same regardless of the length of the visit, so we recommend full and partial pay patients plan on having their yearly complete physical on the first visit.
For adults ages 18 to 49, you will need to meet the following pre-tax, household income limits to use federal family planning funds. (Be sure to arrive at each appointment with information on what everyone who lives in your home earns.)
People in Household Weekly Income Limit,Free Care
Weekly Income Limit, sliding fee scale 1 $170.38 $425.96 2 $229.62... $574.04 3 $288.85 $722.12 4 $348.08 $870.19 5 $407.31 $1018.27 6 $466.54 $1166.35 7 $525.77 $1314.42 8 $585.00 $1462.50
Teens 17 and under who are unwilling to get needed medical care without informing a parent/guardian are eligible regardless of income, and even if insured, no notification will be sent to the policy holder. We encourage parents to allow their teens to visit the doctor unaccompanied and confidentially; however, we also encourage teens to discuss matters regarding sexuality with their parents, even though it is a difficult topic to bring up.
Should I send my daughter or son for family planning services?
This is a tough question for many parents. You don't want your child to think you expect them to become sexually active anytime soon, but you sure don't want them to conceive a child or contract HIV before you even know anything is going on.
We recommend talking with your children about sex early and often. If children are old enough to ask a question, they are old enough to get an accurate answer, even if you don't go into extensive detail. You want your children to feel you are a reliable source of accurate information before they start relying on kids their own age for information.
When your children begin to show an interest in dating, make sure they know about contraception and safe sex. Let them know that many young people end up in sexual situations they regret because they don't want to admit ignorance about sex. (A shocking number of girls' first sexual intercourse is basically date-rape.)
You can let your daughter know that you don't want her to have intercourse, but you want her to have a pack of morning-after pills on hand so a bad experience isn't made worse by an unintended pregnancy. You can let your son know you don't want him to have intercourse, but you want him to know about condoms so he doesn't feel ignorant around his sexually active friends. If your children are more involved than you think, at least during a family planning visit they can get whatever medical care is needed.
In all cases, let them know that they may help their friends avoid bad situations by educating themselves and passing on accurate facts to correct any misinformation going around the schoolyard. Many young people are embarrassed to talk about sex to others, to the point that they are willing to climb into bed naked with someone they aren't comfortable discussing condoms with. They may also have picked up attitudes that give them the impression that it is shameful to engage in some sexual practices that have little risk of passing pregnancy or disease, but that it is cool to have unsafe sex with people one barely knows. Getting them to think about these attitudes before they are personally applicable helps them avoid unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV.