According to a story in today's Boston Globe, Planned Parenthood receives its kits of the Plan B emergency contraception from Barr Laboratories for $4.25 each, and typically sells them to patients for $30. That would be a markup of over 600%, a potentially substantial profit as the organization distributed 774,482 of the Plan B kits in 2003. What is not clear from the article is how frequently Planned Parenthood reduces that cost on a sliding scale, or whether that charge includes costs for any examination/staff time.
Because PP has been active in promoting over the counter access to Plan B, a representative for anti-abortion group Concerned Women for America stated, "The profit motive behind Planned Parenthood's involvement in making the morning-after pill [available over the counter] is something that needs to be seriously looked at and questioned," according to the story. However, a PP representative responded, and I think rightly, that "The changes could actually diminish the revenue Plan B generates for the organization because women could buy it in more places." If women can pick up Plan B at any drugstore, fewer women will need to visit PP in order to receive the drug.
However, I would be interested in finding out more about the frequency of the $30 charge for the drug at PP clinics, versus reduced sliding scale pricing. I understand that revenue is needed in order to operate and provide women with valuable services, so a more in depth understanding of the organization's finances would be necessary to fully understand this issue. See the Globe article linked above for a few more details. If PP issues a response, I'll update this post later.
(found via Medpundit)
Technorati Tags: emergency contraception; Plan B; Planned Parenthood
MeSH Tags: Contraception, Postcoital; Levonorgestrel
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