App of the Week – Planned Parenthood Direct

Published On September 13, 2019 | By Tom Huskerson | App of the Week

Women’s reproductive health, especially abortion, is a hot button political issue. Women have an absolute right to decide what to do with their bodies and that is why Planned Parenthood Direct is the App of the Week.

Planned Parenthood announced the expansion of its Planned Parenthood Direct app to function in 27 states and will be available in all 50 states in 2020. Using the app women can order birth control, get a prescription for Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) antibiotics, and schedule appointments at a Planned Parenthood clinic.

Planned Parenthood Direct is the combination of two app pilot programs originally launched in 2014 and 2015. Planned Parenthood also offers a chat/text program called Roo that is focused reproductive health. Planned Parenthood believes Roo and other digital tools are making reproductive healthcare and information accessible to as many people as possible.

According to Planned Parenthood the app is one of the ways that it is expanding care at a time when funding and access for women’s health is shrinking across the country. In August, Planned Parenthood exited the federal government’s Title X funding program. The program provides financial support for reproductive health services. But the Trump administration installed new rules blocking Title X funding recipients from referring patients to abortion services. Rather than surrender to the anti-abortion rule Planned Parenthood kissed the $60 million in funding good-bye.

The Planned Parenthood Direct app is part of a larger tele-health trend. New apps allow doctors to reach rural, low-income, or other people who may not have access to healthcare. Birth control and UTI prescriptions are making the case for tele-medicine. Users of the app answer the same questions in the apps as they would in a doctor’s office. Clinicians assess what medication is right for them.

Birth control does not always requires a doctor’s exam. Users answer the standard questions for birth control prescriptions. Planned Parenthood believes expanding access is an important step to preventing unwanted pregnancy. Planned Parenthood’s app does not accept insurance. However, other birth control delivery apps, like Nurx and Pill Club do. Out-of-pocket birth control can cost as low as $20 for a three month supply.

Planned Parenthood Direct is free and available for Apple and Android devices.

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About The Author

Tom Huskerson Bio Born in Richmond Virginia Tom Huskerson is a military veteran who settled in California after his discharge. Tom attended Santa Barbara City College where he began his writing career as a campus reporter. He worked as an intern news reporter for the Santa Barbara News-Press writing feature stories before moving on to San Francisco. At San Francisco State University Tom studied broadcast communications and began to focus on the Internet. He completed his graduate thesis on Internet advertising. Tom was the first student to ever focus on the Internet as a graduate student at San Francisco State University. After graduation he went to work for Zona Research in California’s Silicone Valley. As a research associate Tom supported senior analyst writing on the latest developments in the Internet industry. During the dot com boom Tom worked for several web businesses as a market researcher and analyst. As a writer and researcher Tom has authored various technical works including a training program for Charles Schwab security. Other projects included professional presentations on workplace violence and hiring security contractors. Tom has also written both fiction and non-fiction works and blogging for a travel website. He has published two books of short stories and completed two novels. Tom is the owner of Scribe of Life Literature and EbonyCandle.com. Tom is not the chief editor for the OnTechStreet. com. A news and information blog that focuses on tech news for African-Americans. The blog is the result of his desire to inform the African American community of the dangers and benefits of the cyber age. In his blog Tom reports on information security, new and analysis, scams and hoaxes, legal happenings and various topics that arise from the age of information. Tom believes that technology is a necessary tool for black people and they should know what is happening. Tom writes believing that techno speak is for the professional and that valuable information can be communicated using plain language. As a result he has embraced the motto, Less Tech, More Knowledge.

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