COLORADO SPRINGS — So much for a baby boom. It's now looking like a post-pandemic baby bust.
Early on in the pandemic, you may have been one of those people who thought quarantining would result in baby-making, but experts say the data shows the exact opposite. A Brookings Institute Report released Thursday projects around 300,000 fewer births this year because of the pandemic.
Nurx, the largest digital practice for women's health, is experiencing a stunning 50% increase in birth control requests during the pandemic. Nurx ships birth control directly to a woman's doorstep, bypassing the traditional visit to a clinic or physician typically necessary for getting or renewing a prescription. It also provides STI and HIV testing.
News5 spoke to Family Medicine and Public Health Doctor Julie Graves. She is also a Senior Medical Adviser for Nurx. Graves says many of her patients have expressed concern over having a child during the pandemic. With ICU beds in short supply, exposure risks, and hospital protocols, many families are choosing to wait to have another child until things get back to normal.
Families are also having to work from home and be in charge of their kid's education, a huge undertaking for many households across Southern Colorado.
"If you are home with other children that you are having to home-school and work, and do all the things that our American families will have to deal with, I can absolutely understand why people wouldn't want another change in their life," Graves said.
Graves says, there's also a growing concern over contraceptive deserts. Places where there aren't enough OBGYNs or health centers meant to address women's health concerns.
According to Power to Decide, a nonprofit that has a national campaign that advocates for birth control availability, several counties in Southern Colorado are considered contraceptive deserts. To look at the tool that measures each county, click here.
