UAMS receives $600,000 from an anonymous donor for postpartum contraceptives

Little Rock, Arkansas – According to a press release, a UAMS team under the direction of Nirvana Manning, M.D., chair of the UAMS College of Medicine Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, plans to offer them to 449 patients at those facilities and the UAMS West Family Medicine Residency Program in Fort Smith this year.

This award has been crucial in enabling access to contraceptive coverage that complies with national standards as well as in giving information that, according to Manning, would likely enable the expansion of care to all patients, regardless of insurance status.

The devices and the cost of insertion will be covered by the grant funding, according to UAMS’ proposal for the money, and there will also be an emphasis on clinician training “to expand understanding and establish clinical champions throughout the hospital network.”

The Application said a study in South Carolina showed the use of the devices “was associated with decreased odds of a subsequent short-interval pregnancy.”

“In Arkansas, LARC devices and insertions are not part of the bundled Medicaid reimbursement rate in birthing room settings, which serves as a barrier to care,” the application states.

“This grant has been instrumental in not only providing access to contraceptive coverage that is in line with national recommendations but also in providing data that we hope will support the expansion to all patients, regardless of insurance coverage,” Manning said.

According to UAMS’ application for the grant funds, the funds provide the devices and the cost of insertion, as well as a focus on clinician training “to increase knowledge and create clinical champions within the hospital network.”

The Application said a study in South Carolina showed the use of the devices “was associated with decreased odds of a subsequent short-interval pregnancy.”

“In Arkansas, LARC devices and insertions are not part of the bundled Medicaid reimbursement rate in birthing room settings, which serves as a barrier to care,” the application states.