Trends in Postpartum Contraceptive Use in 20 U.S. States and Jurisdictions: The Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System, 2015-2018.

INTRODUCTION: In the last decade, state and national programs and policies aimed to increase access to postpartum contraception; however, recent data on population-based estimates of postpartum contraception is limited.

METHODS: Using Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System data from 20 sites, we conducted multivariable-adjusted weighted multinomial regression to assess variation in method use by insurance status and geographic setting (urban/rural) among people with a recent live birth in 2018. We analyzed trends in contraceptive method use from 2015 to 2018 overall and within subgroups using weighted multinomial logistic regression.

RESULTS: In 2018, those without insurance had lower odds of using permanent methods (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 0.72; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.53-0.98), long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) (AOR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.51-0.89), and short-acting reversible contraception (SARC) (AOR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.47-0.81) than those with private insurance. There were no significant differences in these method categories between public and private insurance. Rural respondents had greater odds than urban respondents of using all method categories: permanent (AOR, 2.15; 95% CI, 1.67-2.77), LARC (AOR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.04-1.65), SARC (AOR, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.15-1.76), and less effective methods (AOR, 1.38; 95% CI, 1.11-1.72). From 2015 to 2018, there was an increase in LARC use (odds ratio [OR], 1.03; 95% CI, 1.01-1.05) and use of no method (OR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.02-1.07) and a decrease in SARC use (OR, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.95-0.99). LARC use increased among those with private insurance (OR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.02-1.08) and in urban settings (OR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.02-1.07), but not in other subgroups.

CONCLUSIONS: We found that those without insurance had lower odds of using effective contraception and that LARC use increased among those who had private insurance and lived in urban areas. Strategies to increase access to contraception, including increasing insurance coverage and investigating whether effectiveness of existing initiatives varies by geographic setting, may increase postpartum contraceptive use and address these differences.