Puerto Rico (PR) continues to outpace the United States on numerous adverse reproductive and socioeconomic health indicators. PR rates are higher than the national rates for each of the following indicators: preterm birthrates, low birth weight, STD and HIV/AIDS rates, incidence of breast cancer, and educational attainment. Furthermore, since the PR Government Medicaid Health Insurance Plan only reimburses for contraceptive costs and not for any other family planning service, and since there is minimal private insurance coverage in PR for contraceptive services, the need for Title X family planning services is extremely significant. In 2020, 94% of the Program’s clients were below 100% of the federal poverty level. For many low-income women and men who have suffered historic disparities, the UPR-TXFPP is the principal, if not the only source of medical care and serves as the gateway into primary health services.
Located within the UPR, Medical Sciences Campus, Graduate School of Public Health, the UPR-TXFPP serves as the lead provider of community research, public health education, and other academic endeavors. For over five decades the UPR-TXFPP has provided access to high-quality, culturally sensitive family planning and related health care to low-income, underinsured and uninsured individuals. The Program has a well-established infrastructure to meet the needs of the target population having cultivated an Island-wide network of robust linkages with partners that are devoted to improving the health outcomes of PR residents. The Program will continue to provide sound guidance and oversight to sub-recipient agencies, thereby ensuring compliance with the Title X statute, regulations, and legislative mandates for the provision of quality family planning services that are guided by OPA key priorities in communities that have been historically underserved, marginalized, and adversely affected by persistent poverty and inequality.
