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Wednesday Weekly 
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In This Issue
Progress on Contraception
New SIECUS State Profiles
National STD Billing Training Center
Does Sexual Orientation Affect Teen Pregnancy Risk?
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Transgender Sexual Violence Survivors
LARC Challenges Webinar
Coming to a Clinic Near You: The $50 IUD
Life is Short - Smile!
Important Dates
10/13-14- MPHA Conference Bozeman
10/14-15- Outreach and Enrollment Summit
10/22- I&E Committee
10/27- Health Educator Conference Call
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October 7, 2015
Quote of the Week 
Fall has always been my favorite season. The time when everything bursts with its last beauty, as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale.
~Lauren DeStefano

Progress on Contraception
Recognizing Progress on World Contraception Day
 
World Contraception Day, every year on September 26, is an opportunity to increase awareness of contraception and to draw attention to those whose contraceptive needs are not met. This year's motto was "It's Your Life, It's Your Future, Know Your Options." We recognize the efforts you make to assist the people you serve to make an informed decision about the method that best meets their needs. More women, men, teens, and families are getting the information and services they need every day thanks to the work we do to support Title X.      
  
Women and families also continue to benefit from the Affordable Care Act (ACA) contraceptive coverage requirement. A new Guttmacher study published in Contraception highlights the importance of this requirement in reducing cost barriers that can be an obstacle to contraceptive choice for many. It found that before the implementation of the ACA in 2012, 58% of women would have incurred out-of-pocket costs for a hormonal intrauterine device (IUD), compared to only 13% of women in March 2014. These effects extend beyond IUDs: A previous Guttmacher analysis documented a clear decline in out-of-pocket costs for women across a range of methods after the ACA's contraceptive coverage mandate went into effect.

Let's continue making strides to ensure contraceptive access for all. Make sure you have all the information you need to educate and guide those you serve. FPNTC's contraceptive fact sheets cover the basics about how each method works and provide more detailed information on effectiveness, benefits, potential side effects, disadvantages, risks, and where a person can get the method. The fact sheets also cover abstinence, breastfeeding, and emergency contraception.
  
New SIECUS State Profiles
SIECUS ReleasesFY 2014 State Profiles
 
SIECUS is excited to share the most recent edition of our annual publication, SIECUS State Profiles: A Portrait of Sexuality Education and Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs in the States, Fiscal Year 2014 Edition. In the twelve years of the publication's history, SIECUS has tracked federal funding to provide educators, advocates, and policymakers with an annual snapshot of how federal funding is impacting sexuality education across the country. The State Profiles also examine state laws and policies that determine how schools approach sexuality education, as well as highlighting state legislative activity and adolescent health and behavioral data.
 
SIECUS believes that the information included in this latest edition of the State Profiles will help advocates learn from each other, understand best practices, recognize successful models, and ultimately strengthen both policies and programs in their states and communities, working together to expand quality comprehensive sexuality education to all students.
We hope that you find this publication both informative and inspiring.
Visit www.siecus.org/stateprofiles2014 to access the SIECUS State Profiles: A Portrait of Sexuality Education and Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs in the States, Fiscal Year 2014 Edition.
  
National STD Billing Training Center
National STD Billing Training Center
 
The National Sexually Transmitted Disease Related Reproductive Health Training and Technical Assistance Center (STD TAC) provides billing and reimbursement training and technical assistance to state and local STD programs, public health laboratories, and to clinics providing publicly-funded STD services in the US and its territories. Technical assistance is offered in the following areas:
  • Tailor That Tool: Join a small group to help tailor your superbill or policy documents to the needs of your organization.
  • Next Steps Coaching: Sign up for a two-hour coaching session with a billing expert. After the meeting, the coach will send you a summary, including recommended next steps and the option to meet again.
  • Virtual Office Hours: Call the office line (617) 385-3614 on Wednesdays from 1-2 pm ET to talk to a billing expert. No appointment is necessary.
  • Billing Tools from the Billing Toolkit: Learn how to develop billing systems, manage revenue, initiate contracts and enhance ICD-10 coding capacity with the resources in this toolkit.
JSI Research & Training Institute manages the STD TAC.  
Does Sexual Orientation Affect Teen Pregnancy Risk?              
Does Sexual Orientation Affect Teen Pregnancy Risk?
 
National Clearinghouse on Families and Youth: Using data from the 2005, 2007 and 2009 New York City Youth Risk Behavior Survey, researchers Lisa Lindley and Katrina Walsemann found that young people's sexual orientation and the gender of their sexual partners were strongly linked with their risk of getting pregnant or getting someone pregnant. Learn more in this research brief.   
Domestic Violence Awareness Month

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month

 

The Office on Women's Health (OWH) firmly believes that violence against women (VAW) is never acceptable. This Domestic Violence Awareness Month, OWH reiterates its commitment to raising awareness about VAW, the important role health care providers' play of conducting screenings for domestic and interpersonal violence among women and adolescents, and health insurance coverage. If you are a domestic violence prevention advocate or are a woman-focused organization, OWH wants to remind you:

  1. Domestic violence is when one person in a relationship purposely hurts another person physically or emotionally. Domestic violence is also called intimate partner violence or interpersonal violence, because it often is caused by a husband, ex-husband, boyfriend, or ex-boyfriend. Women also can be abusers and abuse can occur whether or not people live under the same roof.
  2. People of all races, education levels, and ages experience domestic abuse.
  3.  In an effort to prevent abuse and improve the health of women who have been abused, the Affordable Care Act requires most insurance plans to cover screenings and brief counseling for domestic and interpersonal violence without a copayment. Evidence shows that screenings and appropriate interventions by health care providers can improve the health of women who have been abused. 
  4. Domestic violence can no longer be considered a pre-existing condition by health insurers. 
  5. Survivors of domestic violence or spousal abandonment can use a permanent special enrollment period to enroll in health coverage through the Health Insurance Marketplace outside of the annual Open Enrollment Period. This special enrollment period allows survivors to enroll separately from their abuser/abandoner, which may help them regain control of their medical lives. Dependents may qualify for coverage, too. Survivors no longer need to worry about being without health coverage, removing a possible barrier to leaving their abuser.
  6. There are ways to help a friend who is being abused. If someone is being abused, you can get help. Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or 800-787-3224 (TDD).
For more information on screenings and counseling, please review the OWH Health Care Providers' Role in Screening and Counseling for Interpersonal and Domestic Violence fact sheet.
Transgender Sexual Violence Survivors: A Self-Help Guide to Healing and Understanding                             
Transgender Sexual Violence Survivors: A Self-Help Guide to Healing and Understanding                              
Transgender survivors of sexual assault - who make up approximately half of the trans community - face unique healing issues. To help meet those unique needs, FORGE is proud to announce the publication of "Transgender Sexual Violence Survivors: A Self-Help Guide to Healing and Understanding," available today! You can view or download your copy here.

This 132-page document is densely packed with information specifically for transgender, gender non-conforming, and gender non-binary survivors of sexual violence.

In a reader-friendly format, the guide covers substantial territory, presenting readers with core information about the impact of trauma and its aftermath, as well as providing resource information on options for healing, and self-help techniques on a wide range of topics that often affect survivors. A section of the guide is devoted to the unique intersections that trans survivors face which often lead to challenges in accessing services and delays in healing.

Three appendices provide information:
 
1. For trans people who have just been assaulted; 
2. Tools for assessing if your current relationship might be abusive, and 
3. New federal non-discrimination protections for trans people.

The Self-Help Guide to Healing and Understanding is the second of four guides to be issued this year. The first guide, "Let's Talk about It! A Transgender Survivor's Guide to Accessing Therapy," released in May 2015, is available to download here. The additional two guides, "A Guide for Partners and Loved Ones of Trans Sexual Violence Survivors," and "A Guide for Support Group Facilitators" will be issued this fall. 
LARC Challenges Webinar                             
Free CME: LARC Challenges Webinar                             
 
Register now for our free webinar, LARC Challenges, jointly led by Nikki Zite, MD, MPH and Nichole Tyson, MD, on Thursday, October 22, 2015, 3:00-4:00 PM ET. Drs. Zite and Tyson will review common concerns such as difficult IUD insertions, management of non-palpable implants and non-fundal IUDs, and diagnosis and treatment of infections and pregnancy with an IUD in place. This activity has been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.

Upon completion of the presentation, participants will be able to:
  • Discuss approaches to challenging LARC device insertion and removal (e.g., stenotic cervices,  nulliparous women, non-palpable implants, and missing IUD strings)
  • Describe management strategies for IUD malpositioning, expulsion, and perforation
  • Understand the diagnosis and treatment of infections and pregnancy with an IUD in place
ACCME Accreditation
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

College Cognate Credit(s)
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1 Category 1 College Cognate Credit. The College has a reciprocity agreement with the AMA that allows AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ to be equivalent to College Cognate Credits.   
Coming To A Clinic Near You: The $50 IUD With A Fascinating Backstory                             
IUD Coming To A Clinic Near You: The $50 IUD With A Fascinating Backstory
By Carey Goldberg, (Article, 10/2/2015)
 
Its whole reason for being is to serve poor and uninsured women, to make IUDs - which can cost $1,000 or more - affordable to all, and available on demand at publicly funded health centers.
 
To read the full article, click here. 
  Life is Short - Smile!
  
Please forward this on to any parties that may be interested.