Maryland Expands Access to Contraceptive Care

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The state of Maryland has entered into a four-year partnership with a Boston, Massachusetts-based nonprofit to eliminate barriers to contraceptive care.

In an announcement on Tuesday, Gov. Wes Moore said the cooperative agreements between the Maryland Department of Health and Upstream USA will expand training and other resources to health care providers, particularly in underserved and rural communities.

“This is about making sure that we treat contraception like basic health care, because contraception is basic health care,” Moore said in a written statement.

Through the partnership, the Democrat continued, “we will bring contraception to communities that have too often been overlooked … and we will build on Maryland’s growing reputation as a state that is ready to lead on health care and close gaps in our health care system.”

According to the Guttmacher Institute, a research and policy organization committed to advancing sexual and reproductive health rights, Maryland has one of the highest rates of unintended pregnancy in the United States. 

As of 2023, nearly 285,000 Maryland women-in-need live in areas where there is not reasonable access to health organizations that offer a full range of contraceptive methods.

CCI Health Services, a federally qualified health center, will be the first health care partner to receive support and services as part of the statewide initiative. 

With locations across Maryland, CCI Health Services will be able to provide high-quality, accessible care to its members, who typically live in medically underserved communities, officials said. 

At present, said Dr. Laura Herrera Scott, Maryland’s Health Department secretary, “tens of thousands of women live in areas of Maryland where there is not reasonable access to health care.”

Upstream USA was founded six years ago with the goal of reducing unintended pregnancy and improving contraceptive care for patients across the nation. 

The organization trains community health care organizations, hospital practices and primary care facilities to provide well-rounded, patient-centered and prompt contraceptive care as part of basic health care. 

“We are at a crucial point in history, where there should be no wrong door for patients to access birth control,” said Upstream CEO Mark Edwards.

“Under the direction of Gov. Moore and in partnership with Upstream, the Maryland Department of Health is taking a leadership role to close gaps in contraceptive care by integrating best-in-class contraceptive services into primary care settings,” Edwards said.