Welp. America scored a “D” in reproductive health

While we don’t like to get a bad grade in anything, we most certainly don’t like getting a bad grade in reproductive health. What are we talking about? Well, the Population Institute has just given the United States a “D” grade in its annual report card on reproductive health and rights. This is not what we want to hear.

If you’re unfamiliar with the Population Institute, their mission is pretty great:

"The Population Institute is an international non-profit that educates policymakers and the public about population, and seeks to promote universal access to family planning information, education, and services. Through voluntary family planning, we strive to achieve a world population in balance with a healthy global environment and resource base."

On January 12th, the Institute released its fifth annual report on reproductive health in America. The main reasons that America earned a D — down from a still abysmal D+ from last year — are:

— The general hostility toward reproductive health and rights.

— The government potentially defunding Title X, Planned Parenthood, and teen pregnancy prevention programs especially with the Zika virus being a serious problem.

— The fact that our teen pregnancy rate is higher than other developed countries’ rates.

— The rate of unintended pregnancies being incredibly high.

— Regulations and budget cuts forcing family planning clinics to close.

Each state received a grade and the average led to this D rating.

How the Population Institute calculated these grades is less subjective than you’d think and is based on a 100-point system that rates effectiveness, prevention, affordability, and access of reproductive health and rights.

The only states to receive A’s were California, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington with 20 states — 20 STATES! — receiving F’s.

You can download the report on which state you live in to see how its reproductive grade was figured.

Even if you live in a state that received an A or a B, seeing that map of the U.S. filled with the red of F’s is disheartening and shows what a real issue reproductive health in America is. So get involved in protecting your reproductive rights and the rights of others because as the Population Institute’s report shows, this is an issue that affects the health of ALL Americans — not just women.