Do you like birth control but hate that it can't just materialize on your front door like a box of pizza?
Planned Parenthood is on the case, elevating the process of obtaining birth control to a level of convenience usually reserved for Chinese take-out. The organization has just launched a pilot program in Minnesota and Washington State that would allow people to consult with a medical professional online and receive birth control through the mail.
The new program lets people talk to "providers" through video chats or a mobile app. There's no need to set-up an appointment, you can just log on and choose an available medical professional. However, it's not a 24-hour operation. If you're in a hurry to get birth control, you can do it the old-fashioned way, like actually getting out of your apartment and setting foot inside a pharmacy. In Minnesota, the service is available seven days a week, from 9am to 9pm. In Washington, it's only on during weekdays. According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Planned Parenthood started the program about a week ago. The organization's operations in the two states also cover South Dakota, North Dakota, Idaho and Alaska. However, the group is forbidden from offering the service in those states due to legal constraints.
"When a woman needs birth control, she really, really needs it. If we are going to be relevant to them we have to be their online provider," Sarah Stoesz, the head of Planned Parenthood in Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota, told the Star-Tribune.
"Our patients are between the ages of roughly 18 and 29, so they are millennials, and they are used to being on [the] cutting edge of technology adaptation... Planned Parenthood is not their mother's Planned Parenthood... We have really evolved."
An online consultation, or "video visit," costs around $45. However, that price may go up depending on your location, the brand of your drug and what type of medicine you want. A visit only lasts for about 15 minutes, and Planned Parenthood advises logging on 15 to 30 minutes before 9pm. The program will soon be expanded for consultations on sexually transmitted diseases. Similar to the birth control program, patients will also receive medication through the mail. The STD consultations, which are expected to start in October, will focus on gonorrhea and chlamydia patients.
