Low-Income Women's Access to Family Planning

Mississippi provides increased access to reproductive health care services through a Section 1115 family planning waiver.  The waiver allows the state to cover family planning services for women of childbearing age with incomes at or below 185% of the federal poverty level.  

Beneficiaries of family planning coverage available through the waiver are not required to pay premiums or co-payments for covered services.  Covered services include: contraceptive counseling and information;  contraceptive supplies, devices, implants and prescriptions; office visits, consultation, examination and diagnosis; laboratory examinations and tests;  voluntary sterilization; HIV blood screenings/STI testing in conjunction with a family planning encounter.  

The waiver will expire on Oct. 31, 2011.  

Miss. Family Planning Demonstration Fact Sheet, Ctrs. for Medicare and Medicaid Servs., Feb. 16, 2006;  Medicaid Waivers and Demonstrations List, Details for Miss. Family Planning 1115, Ctrs. for Medicare and Medicaid Servs. at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicaidStWaivProgDemoPGI/MWDL/itemdetail.asp?filterType=none&filterByDID=-99&sortByDID=2&sortOrder=ascending&itemID=CMS028661&intNumPerPage=2000 (last visited Dec. 5, 2008); NARAL Pro-Choice America Survey of State Medicaid Offices