Meeting the Contraceptive Needs of a Community: Increasing Access to Long-Acting Reversible Contraception.

To control their reproductive lives, women must have access to all contraceptive methods including the most effective reversible methods, intrauterine devices, and implants. The Contraceptive CHOICE Project, a study of 9,256 women in St. Louis, showed that when barriers to contraception are removed, many women choose intrauterine devices and implants, substantially reducing rates of unintended pregnancy and abortion. This article discusses strategies we learned from the CHOICE Project to improve uptake of the most effective contraceptive methods.