| The California Emergency Contraception (EC) Network consists of experienced community leaders and health professionals dedicated to improving access to EC and protecting women's health by sharing information and strategies among a broad constituency of stakeholders, including but not limited to clinicians, pharmacists, state and local officials, public health departments, researchers, advocacy groups, and health educators.
The goals of the statewide California Emergency Contraception Network are to:
- Universally improve access to and awareness of emergency contraception as a way to prevent unplanned pregnancy and protect women’s health.
- Bolster women's decision-making authority to use EC as a means to help plan their families and time their pregnancies.
- Mainstream EC access and use universal access as a bridge to ongoing reproductive healthcare.
- Support women's reproductive right and ability to choose from a wide range of contraceptive options, including EC.
- Impress upon policymakers, opinion leaders, and the media the importance of expanding access to EC.
The California EC Network affirms that unplanned pregnancies can be addressed and reduced with greater access to EC. To this end, the EC Network supports an EC information campaign that clearly and accurately conveys the safety, efficacy, and acceptability of EC in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner to reach California's diverse communities.
Augmenting currently available EC information and EC services to California communities will positively reinforce existing family planning measures and protect future generations by providing greater assurance that every pregnancy will be a planned one. The ultimate goal will be to share the successful statewide strategies nationally.
California EC Network Structure
As of November 2006, the CA EC Network is guided by a small (5-6 people) Executive Steering Committee of individuals who represent the interests of the following communities: youth, low-income and women's health advocacy; medical providers; pharmacy; legal; and health research. Members of the Executive Steering Committee will participate on at least one of the subcommittees outlined below, and report the subcommittees' current initiatives at bimonthly Executive Steering Committee meetings. Current Executive Steering Committee Members are:
- Susan Berke Fogel, JD, Attorney and Consultant
- Kathy Besinque, Pharm.D., University of Southern California School of Pharmacy
- Ingrid Dries-Daffner, MPH, Pharmacy Access Partnership
- Anna Garcia, California Family Health Council
- Tina Raine-Bennett, MD, MPH, University of California San Francisco
- Belle Taylor-McGhee, Pharmacy Access Partnership
The Steering Committee will also meet as needed for emergent policy updates. All Steering Committee meetings will be open to any Network member interested in participating.
All CA EC Network members are encouraged to participate in one (or more) of four subcommittees: Communications, Programs and Activities, Fundraising, and a local initiative in Los Angeles. Subcommittee representatives meet monthly to discuss ongoing work and future plans. Please contact Ingrid Dries-Daffner at iddaffner@phi.org to join one of the subcommittees.
Our Funders
The CA EC Network was launched with a seed grant from the Institute for Reproductive Health Access and receives ongoing support from member organizations.
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