January 24, 2023

Dear Members of the Indiana House of Representatives Public Health Committee/Indiana Senate Health Committee,

As health care providers in the state of Indiana, we are reaching out to encourage you to support legislation that would allow pharmacists to prescribe contraception. House Bill 1568 and Senate Bill 153 would permit the Indiana Board of Pharmacy to develop a protocol and specify pharmacist training to enable hormonal contraception to be prescribed and dispensed at a pharmacy. Twenty-four states (and the District of Columbia) have enacted similar legislation, and it has been demonstrated to reduce unintended pregnancy and improve access to contraceptive options.

Eligible people will be screened for medical contraindications and pregnancy and receive structured counseling from a trained pharmacist. In addition to the standard counseling, the importance of regular visits with a primary care clinician to obtain recommended screening tests and information on long-acting reversible contraception will be emphasized.

We believe that this legislation will provide a crucial additional access point for people into the healthcare setting, and encourage routine follow-up with their primary care provider. Other states that have implemented similar pharmacy access laws have demonstrated that a very high percentage of patients that use this form of access have seen their primary care provider within the last year.

Many areas of our Indiana can be considered “contraceptive deserts”, with poor access to contraceptive options. However, 90% of Americans live within 5 miles of a pharmacy and most are open for longer hours than traditional clinical settings and don’t require an appointment. One state that allows pharmacists prescribing of birth control prevented an estimated 51 unintended pregnancies and  saved the state $1.6 million over one year.

We believe that increasing access to contraception is an important and necessary step to impact various outcomes within our state, including unintended pregnancy rates and infant and maternal mortality.  Removing these types of barriers are crucial for patients.  We urge you to support pharmacist prescribing of birth control.