Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida (PPSWCF) officially launched a prenatal services program on Tuesday. The initiative, available at seven affiliated health centers, offers care for patients in their first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
Services that patients will have access to include ultrasounds, genetic testing, and early pregnancy symptom management.
The program also connects patients to an OBGYN of their choice. PPSWCF will refer a physician to the expectant parent, who will follow them throughout their pregnancy.
PPSWCF chief medical officer Dr. Robyn Schickler said this method helps create a “smooth transition” for patients struggling to find prenatal care.
“We hear from a lot of patients and community members that they can’t find out they’re pregnant, and they can’t get into an OB-GYN until the second trimester for a few months,” said Shickler. This helps bridge that gap, to see them early in their care and get established.”
Schickler said that the growing OB-GYN shortage was a key reason for launching the program. She stated that restrictive healthcare policies have driven many providers out of the state.
“There’s a six-week abortion ban, and that eventually leads to healthcare providers not wanting to stay in a state where there are so many restrictions on care. So it ends up being a supply and demand thing. There are so many people and so many patients, and not enough OBGYN providers to provide that care.”
A 2024 poll by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research found that 58% of Floridians worry about access to OB-GYN services. The issue extends nationwide, particularly in states with restrictive reproductive healthcare laws.
In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. Constitution does not confer a right to abortion in the Dobbs V. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case.
A JAMA Network study reported a 4.2% decrease in practitioners per 100,000 reproductive-aged females in states with the most restrictive healthcare after the decision.
With access to prenatal care shrinking, Shickler said PPSWCF’s program is critical for the needs of pregnant people. She said she wants to inform people about how these services benefit everyone.
“Prenatal care is so important because it establishes the foundation for that pregnancy so that you can be as healthy as possible. “And I do want people to know, you know, we are Planned Parenthood. We don’t just do birth control, we want to help our community.”
The prenatal program follows the recent expansion of PPSWCF’s services. The organization introduced IUD sedation options, vasectomy services, and infertility care within the last few months.
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