Family planning perspectives
-
Data on the provision of seven types of reproductive health care were collected from private physicians in four specialties: general/family practitioners (GP/FPs), general surgeons, obstetrician-gynecologists and urologists. All ob-gyns, and eight in 10 GP/FPs, provide the pill, IUD or diaphragm. Over nine in 10 ob-gyns provide infertility and obstetric care and prenatal genetic screening; but only one-third or fewer of GP/FPs do so. ⋯ One-half of doctors who perform female sterilizations, and eight in 10 of those who do vasectomies, require spousal consent. Among those who perform abortions, half require parental consent for minors. Access to private reproductive health care is quite limited for the poor, because many physicians will not accept Medicaid reimbursements or reduce their fees for low-income patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)