PDF A 50-STATE REPORT CARD

THE STATE OF REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND RIGHTS:

A 50-STATE D REPORT CARD

U.S. REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND RIGHTS: FROM SLIPPERY SLOPE TO FREE FALL -- 20 STATES RECEIVE A FAILING GRADE

The status of reproductive health and rights in the U.S. is on a slippery slope that is quickly becoming a free fall. While the country's slide continued in 2016, there was one positive development. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned the arbitrary and unconstitutional restrictions on abortion providers, which had been adopted by Texas. Last year as a whole, however, saw further erosion in support for reproductive health and rights, particularly at the state level. In 27 states today more than 50 percent of women now live in a county without an abortion provider.

At the federal level, supporters of family planning and reproductive health programs fought to a relative standstill against opponents. The U.S. House of Representatives resumed its assault on Planned Parenthood. The House of Representatives held up emergency funding for the Zika virus for several months in a vain attempt to prevent Planned Parenthood, and other family planning providers, from receiving any of the funds. House appropriators also voted once again to defund Title X, a 48-year old program that provides federal assistance to family planning clinics serving low-income women. Similarly, the House attempted, unsuccessfully, to slash funding for comprehensive sex education in favor of ineffective `abstinence-only'. Also, a House Select Committee continued its unwarranted investigations into secretly filmed, and heavily edited, videos purporting to show misconduct by Planned Parenthood. Because of new state restrictions on abortion rights and an increasingly hostile political atmosphere, the United States slipped from a "D+" last year to a "D" in 2016. While the Senate foiled the attacks on family planning and reproductive health in 2016, the political outlook for 2017 is bleak. Appointment of a new Supreme Court justice in 2017 could be a major setback for reproductive rights in future court rulings, and the new Administration and Congress may approve draconian cuts in family planning programs and sex education and defund Planned Parenthood. The Trump Administration is also expected to curtail contraceptive coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

JANUARY 2017

D THE UNITED STATES GETS A "D"

THE UNITED STATES AS A WHOLE HAS BEEN GIVEN A GRADE OF D. HERE'S WHY:

The general atmosphere

around reproductive health and rights has continued to be extremely hostile across

the U.S.

Congress has taken aim at eliminating Title X, defunding

Planned Parenthood, and gutting teen pregnancy prevention programs even in the face of the Zika threat.

The teen pregnancy rate, while at historic

lows, is still higher than any other developed

country.

America's rate of unintended

pregnancy remains

stubbornly high: nearly half of all pregnancies in the U.S. are unintended.

Family planning clinics are

being forced to close due to funding cuts and burdensome laws and regulations.

GRADING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND RIGHTS

While most Americans are aware of the national political debate over birth control and abortion, many are unaware of the status of reproductive health and rights in their own state. In the interest of an informed public debate, the Population Institute, for the fifth year in a row, is releasing a report card that gives an overview of what's happening in the 50 States and the District of Columbia.

THE 50-STATE REPORT CARD

THE 50-STATE REPORT CARD FOCUSES ON FOUR BROAD INDICATORS OR POLICIES RELATING TO REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND RIGHTS:

EFFECTIVENESS (30 points): Statewide, what percentage of pregnancies are unintended, and how high is the state's teenage pregnancy rate?

PREVENTION (25 points): Does the state promote comprehensive sex education in the schools, support access to emergency contraception in the emergency room, and allow minors to consent to contraceptive services?

AFFORDABILITY (25 points): Does the state have policies designed to make birth control affordable to uninsured and low-income individuals, and do they allow insurance coverage of abortion services?

ACCESS (20 points): Does the state impose harassing or burdensome requirements on those seeking family planning or abortion services?



CRITERIA AND SCORES:

ELEVEN CRITERIA ARE USED IN DETERMINING A STATE'S COMPOSITE SCORE. STATES WITH THE BEST GRADES WILL HAVE:

1 A low rate of teenage pregnancy (15 points maximum)

7 A Medicaid "waiver" expanding eligibility for family planning services (5 points maximum)

2 A low rate of unintended pregnancy (15 points maximum)

8 Insurance coverage of abortion services (5 points maximum)

3 Comprehensive sex education in the schools (15 points maximum)

9 An absence of burdensome abortion restrictions (10 points maximum)

4 Access to emergency contraception in the emergency room (5 points maximum)

10 An absence of TRAP Laws (Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers) (5 points maximum)

5 Minors access to contraceptive services (5 points maximum)

11 County-level access to family planning and abortion services (5 points maximum)

6 Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act (15 points maximum)

CORE GRADE

Each state is assigned a "core" grade based upon the following grading system:

A: 81-100 points B: 66-80.9 points C: 56-65.9 points D: 46-55.9 points F: < than 45.9 points

STATE

AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS

TOTAL SCORE

33.7 63.6 51.9 42.7 94.1 71.7 70.1 69.8 80.1 31.1 38.5 79.1 42.0 70.5 44.5 74.7 31.7

LETTER GRADE

FC DFA+ BB BB F F BF B FB+ F-

STATE

KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC

TOTAL SCORE

49.2 34.0 66.6 73.5 74.0 47.1 73.5 22.6 32.1 71.4 30.5 61.3 70.7 81.9 83.0 80.7 49.3

LETTER GRADE

DF B BBD B F FBF C B A A+ B D-



STATE

ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY

TOTAL SCORE

43.2 47.7 28.4 93.8 52.4 70.8 45.2 27.6 30.9 36.6 40.7 75.1 36.8 87.4 59.8 40.6 48.5

LETTER GRADE

FDFA+ DB+ FF FFFB FA+ C FD

FINAL GRADE

If there are noteworthy developments or other important policies that are not reflected in the state's "core" grade, a state may be accorded a plus (+) or a minus (-), depending on how the changes are likely to impact reproductive health and rights.

GRADES

A+ to A B to B C to C D to D F to F-

STATE BREAKDOWNS

For state press releases and state-by-state breakdowns of the scoring, more information can be obtained at reportcard

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

About teenage pregnancy in the U.S., see About the rate of unintended pregnancies in the U.S, see About state abortion restrictions, see About State Medicaid Expansions, see About state Medicaid family planning waivers, see About sex education requirements at the state level, see

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We wish to express our deep appreciation to the Guttmacher Institute, the Kaiser Family Foundation, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and other organizations working in this field for the research and reporting that made this report card possible.

105 2nd St, NE, Washington, DC 20002 I Phone: 202-544-3300 I

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download