Take the Charge is a government program that provides free

family planning Family planning is the consideration of the number of children a person wishes to have, including the choice to have no children, and the age at which they wish to have them. Things that may play a role on family planning decisions include marita ...

and pregnancy prevention services to low-income residents of

Washington state Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...

. The program expands

Medicaid Medicaid in the United States is a federal and state program that helps with healthcare costs for some people with limited income and resources. Medicaid also offers benefits not normally covered by Medicare, including nursing home care and pers ...

coverage for family planning services to individuals whose income is 200% or lower than the federal

poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...

level (FPL). By reducing the prevalence of

unintended pregnancies Unintended pregnancies are pregnancies that are mistimed, unplanned or unwanted at the time of conception. Sexual activity without the use of effective contraception through choice or coercion is the predominant cause of unintended pregnancy. W ...

, the goal of the program is to improve public health while reducing Federal and State Medicaid costs of unplanned pregnancies and their consequences. As of November 2007, there were 200 clinics in Washington providing the program's services.

Services

Services available to eligible women include family planning counseling, annual examinations and

pap smear The Papanicolaou test (abbreviated as Pap test, also known as Pap smear (AE), cervical smear (BE), cervical screening (BE), or smear test (BE)) is a method of cervical screening used to detect potentially precancerous and cancerous processes in t ...

s, prescriptions for FDA-approved

birth control Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...

methods including

emergency contraception Emergency contraception (EC) is a birth control measure, used after sexual intercourse to prevent pregnancy. There are different forms of EC. Emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs), sometimes simply referred to as emergency contraceptives (ECs), o ...

, and

tubal ligation Tubal ligation (commonly known as having one's "tubes tied") is a surgical procedure for female sterilization in which the fallopian tubes are permanently blocked, clipped or removed. This prevents the fertilization of eggs by sperm and thus th ...

(sterilization) procedures. Services available to eligible men include FDA-approved over the counter contraceptives (such as male and female

condoms A condom is a sheath-shaped barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both male and female condoms. With proper use—and use at every act of inte ...

and

spermicide Spermicide is a contraceptive substance that destroys sperm, inserted vaginally prior to intercourse to prevent pregnancy. As a contraceptive, spermicide may be used alone. However, the pregnancy rate experienced by couples using only spermicid ...

), annual contraceptive counseling sessions, and

vasectomy Vasectomy, or vasoligation, is an elective surgical procedure for male sterilization or permanent contraception. During the procedure, the male vasa deferentia are cut and tied or sealed so as to prevent sperm from entering into the urethra and ...

(sterilization) procedures.

Impact

The program began in July 2001 and has been utilized by over 400,000 men and women. In September 2006, the

Washington Department of Social and Health Services The Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) is Washington (state), Washington's social services department. The agency has its headquarters in Office Building Two (OB-2) in Olympia, Washington, Olympia, the state capital. Annually, 2.2 mil ...

published an evaluation of the program, entitled ''TAKE CHARGE: Final Evaluation, First Five Years: July 2001-June 2006''. According to the report:

* ''An estimated 22% of the women eligible under the waiver, who would have had an unintended pregnancy, remained pregnancy free.'' * ''The proportion of clients using a more effective family planning method increased from 53.0% at enrollment to 70.6% one year later. The proportion that reported using abstinence in the prior two months remained steady at 11.3%.'' * ''The number of Medicaid women (including Take Charge clients) who received services from family planning clinics increased from 22,850 during the baseline year to 85,607 in year one, 108,253 in year two, and 121,997 in year three.'' * ''The number of Medicaid men (including Take Charge clients) receiving family planning services increased from 850 during the baseline year to 3548 in year one, 4384 in year two, and 5018 in year three.''

Notes

{{Primarysources, date=June 2008

External links

Official website
Medicare and Medicaid (United States) Government of Washington (state) 2001 establishments in the United States Birth control in the United States