Posted on March 29, 2007
The yearly price of birth-control pills and oral contraceptives rose 37 percent at the student Health Center as a result of a new Medicaid rebate law that went into effect this past January.
“Everybody in college health that uses medications, especially birth-control pills, has been affected by the price increase,” said Ann Simmons, Coordinator of Health Promotions. “The types of pills we get and affordability changes every year because we are at the mercy of state contract.”
The bill stemmed from a 2005 deficit reduction bill which focused on Medicaid. Previously, college and university health-care providers were able to attain large discounts from drug companies, but as a result of the law, drug companies no longer have an incentive to offer those discounts to university health-care providers.
“I think it is expensive, and it could possibly discourage people from attaining oral contraceptives and birth control,” senior Ann Dang said. “But the Health Center does offer a payment plan, so you don’t have to pay everything at once and other places still
cost more.”
Since the advent of higher costs, the Health Center has created a payment installment plan and made the decision to accept credit cards.
“We provide students with information on other options that might be more affordable for them,” Simmons said. “We have not seen a decline in the number of students using our health service, but as far as whether they purchase the pills here or we just write them a prescription, there may be a few more opting to fill them at a pharmacy.”
Despite the cost increase at the student Health Center, it is still more affordable than local pharmacies, such as CVS and Harrisonburg Pharmacy. Prices for oral contraceptives and birth-control pills range from $20 a month for the generic brand to $50 a month.
“I think that by increasing the costs it is making it less accessible,” senior Carrie Muhleman said. “The payment installment plan helps a bit, but I still think it is a great increase.”
Once able to offer brand name birth-control pills and oral contraceptives, the Health Center is currently only able to offer students the generic brand.
“We’ve changed to the generic brand because they were the only pills available at a reasonable cost to our students,” Simmons said.
The new change has caused a sense of unease among many female students.
“I don’t trust generic brands; it’s a stigma,” Muhleman said. “Generic anything I wouldn’t think would work as well, and when dealing with birth control, I think it needs to work as well as possible.”
Non-governmental organizations, like Planned Parenthood, are still able to receive significant discounts from the drug companies and are always another option for students, said Simmons.
The American College Health Organization, an organization that represents college health-care providers is currently attempting to change this new law.
