U.N. agency estimates that 12 million women in 115 low- to middle-income countries were ‘unable to access family planning services’<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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FRIDAY, March 12, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Millions of women worldwide lost access to birth control and other family planning services due to disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) says.<\/p>\n
The agency estimates that 12 million women in 115 low- to middle-income countries were “unable to access family planning services as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic” and that the disruptions lasted an average of 3.6 months and resulted in about 1.4 million unplanned pregnancies in 2020, CBS News<\/em> reported. The UNFPA said the “severe social and economic impacts of COVID-19 demand intensified action for women and girls.”<\/p>\n “Once again, the fundamental story is that COVID has indeed wrought devastation on women’s bodies and their lives,” Natalia Kanem, M.D., UNFPA executive director, told CBS News<\/em>. “Women who face this disruption could face a lifelong impact.” Kanem added that creative solutions helped many women get contraceptives despite lockdowns and quarantines. In Uganda, a UNFPA-led project redirected ride-share drivers to help shuttle reproductive health items from pharmacies to patients.<\/p>\n But Thursday’s report says that even the reduced numbers are still a “concern” and that “severe social and economic impacts of COVID-19 demand intensified action for women and girls.”<\/p>\n CBS News<\/em> Article<\/a><\/p>\n