The Johnsonian

Issue date: 10/24/07 Section: News

If you're already paying more for birth control on campus than when you began, prepare to see another increase at the beginning of next semester.

Prices on name brand contraceptives rose dramatically this year, with Ortho Tri-Cyclen pills climbing from $20 to $38 a pack. Prices will rise again in January, said Michelle Mann, assistant director for health services. Even generic package prices are expected to increase soon.

On a campus where about 70 percent of students are female, Mann said that the women she sees in Crawford as a nurse practitioner are getting a little frustrated.

"Sometimes they have to prioritize and give up something to be able to pay for their birth control," she said. "We don't want the cost to be a barrier for women's health."

The soar in prices is due to a provision in the Deficit Reduction Act two years ago that prohibits drug companies from giving universities clinic pricing on medications. When the act was passed in 2005, the university started buying generic packages to help ease the "Every university health center has been impacted by this," said Mann, who can barely keep birth control in stock with the limited funding. "I've seen a lot of students go from buying a three-month supply of birth control to just buying it one month at a time to fit their budgets."

Mann said health services used to make a $2 profit on each name brand pack. Now they're barely making any money off birth control.

Health services provides education for women thinking about birth control, but without any major profits being made on the pills, patches and rings, Mann said she isn't sure how the price increase will affect these programs.

Rumors have even come out that Wal-Mart will soon be selling birth control pills for as little as $9.

"That would really hurt us," Mann said. "In a way, I'd be excited for students who couldn't afford it otherwise, but when they come to us they're also getting educated and they're getting their questions answered. That's the most important thing."

Generic pills are currently at $25. Back in 2003, students could get birth control from Crawford for as little as $7.

It will take a lot of voices to turn prices in the other direction, Mann said. She suggested beginning with insurance companies.

"Insurance pays for Viagra and a lot of other things, but it won't pay for birth control," Mann pointed out, adding that the big myth about contraceptives is that they're only used for pregnancy.

Mann also suggested that students talk to their local congressman about the increase.

Birth control is still more expensive at local pharmacies, but Mann said she isn't sure how much longer health services will be able to keep up with the competitive prices.

"I didn't even know you could get birth control on campus," Kristine Webb, junior IMC major, said. "If you could, I kind of figured it would be free."

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