Allen Women's Health 50th Anniversary: Family Planning and More
June 11, 2019
Twenty years ago, 47 of every 1,000 teen girls in Black Hawk County gave birth each year. By 2015, that number declined to just 16.
Now celebrating its 50th anniversary, Allen Women’s Health has helped reduce teen and young adult pregnancy by providing publicly-funded family planning services.
“We can enroll and provide services under the state family planning program to individuals in households that fall within 300 percent of federal poverty guidelines,” said clinic manager Sandy Kahler. “That is very important for low income people or those with insurance that may not cover birth control or long-acting reversible contraception.”
This matters to the entire community because every dollar spent on publicly-funded family planning services ultimately saves more than seven dollars of public funds. That equals about $15.8 billion in savings for taxpayers nationwide.
The all-female staff at Allen Women’s Health also provides health care services to individuals who are fully insured. In 2018, 2,643 individual patients from 24 counties benefited from services including physical examinations, routine lab work, cancer screenings, STD testing and medically approved methods of birth control. In 2017, 79 percent of the patient population was living below the federal poverty threshold, which translates to a gross annual income of $12,140 for a single-person household.
Regardless of income level, Black Hawk County continues to have the highest rates of Chlamydia and Gonorrhea in the state. The services provided by Allen Women’s Health help identify those individuals and their partners to provide confidential treatment to reduce further spread of infection.
Allen Women’s Health is celebrating its 50th anniversary and will continue to offer services that help our community for years to come. If you have a concern about your reproductive health, call the clinic at (319) 235-5050.