Lots Of Women Plan To Get IUDs Before Trump Makes It So They Can't

As Americans face the reality that Donald Trump will be our next president — and with a GOP-controlled Congress to boot — women rightly fear for their reproductive rights.

Trump ran an aggressively anti-choice campaign and said he’d defund Planned Parenthood. He chose a running mate, Mike Pence, so devoted to crushing reproductive rights that he once signed a law that would require women to bury or cremate their aborted fetuses. On top of that, he’s vowed to repeal Obamacare. Though it’s unclear exactly what that would look like, the Affordable Care Act currently requires insurance companies to provide free access to contraception.

That’s why many women are planning to get IUDs, or intrauterine devices, and encouraging others to do so, too. Though IUDs are not necessarily the best choice for everyone, it’s understandable why so many women are urging others to research them.

An IUD, which is a small T-shaped device inserted into the uterus, is not only the most effective form of reversible contraception on the market, it also can last from 3-10 years, depending on the variety. That means if you get one now, while you’re easily able to do so, it could last you through a Trump presidency, as Erin Gloria Ryan pointed out in a Daily Beast article last week.

Hormonal IUDs like Mirena, Skyla and the relatively new Kyleena can prevent ovulation, thin the uterus lining and thicken cervical mucus to create a barrier. Paragard, a copper IUD — and the one that can be used for up to 10 years — is toxic to sperm and makes the uterine wall slicker so that it’s difficult for an egg to implant.

Representatives for both Paragard and for Planned Parenthood told The Huffington Post that IUDs have seen increasing popularity over the past several years, but that it’s too soon to determine whether the election will have any real impact.

“It’s too early to tell if we’ll see an uptick in requests for IUDs as a result of the election,” said Planned Parenthood’s Dr. Raegan McDonald-Mosley in a statement. “While we truly hope that birth control methods will be available, accessible, and affordable to all women under the Trump administration, we understand people’s real concerns about losing access to birth control, which is basic health care for women.”

Erin Schumaker contributed reporting.