Bayer, Direct Relief to Give Planned Parenthood $80,000 to Increase 'Access to Birth Control’

Four health clinics that provide contraceptives, including two Planned Parenthood locations, are set to receive part of $80,000 in funding meant to increase access to contraceptives.

The funding will come from a grant from drug company Bayer and the humanitarian organization Direct Relief. The initiative is part of the We’re For Her program, which is part of a larger long-term project of Bayer to provide contraception to 100 million women worldwide by the year 2030.

According to The Christian Post, the grant is “designed to help address financial and educational barriers to contraceptives.”
Under the program, four clinics will receive $40,000 each “to expand access to contraceptives for underserved or underinsured women in their communities.”

Two of the health clinics are Planned Parenthood offices.

Planned Parenthood of Indiana in Indianapolis, Indiana, and Planned Parenthood Great Plains, were awarded two of the four grants after they submitted proposals to establish programs “that would help increase access to family planning services for their most vulnerable patients.”

The other two grants were awarded to Adagio Health in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Maternal and Family Health Services in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.

“The nonprofit health providers receiving this funding from Direct Relief already provide high-quality reproductive health services for their patients, and this support, generously provided by Bayer, will allow them to continue to expand these essential services,” said Paulina Ospina, the Director of Maternal and Child Health at Direct Relief.

“Direct Relief is grateful to these awardees that care for all patients, regardless of circumstances, and for Bayer’s leadership that supports comprehensive contraceptive choice,” she added.

Planned Parenthood President and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson said he was thankful for the grants.

“Bayer and Direct Relief support sexual and reproductive health care and education, and understand that all people deserve access to the care they need, when they need it, no matter what,” he said.

Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Zach Gibson/Stringer

Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.