FAQs

Navigating your personal healthcare can be tricky and it’s normal to have a lot of questions. Here are some answers to questions we are frequently asked. If you can’t find what you’re looking for here, please call 207-922-3222 and speak with one of our knowledgeable staff members, or use the ‘Let’s Chat’ button.

Family Planning Benefit

Maine Family Planning is pleased to inform our patients about Maine’s Family Planning Benefit program, which is available to legal Maine residents of childbearing age (male and female), including teens, with an individual income of $27,257 or less annually. Eligibility for this program is based on individual income, not household income.

The Family Planning Benefit program provides limited coverage for family planning services such as:

Pregnancy testing and preconception counseling
Birth control methods, including emergency contraception
Testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections
Annual gynecological exams
Screening for cervical cancer, and if needed, repeat Pap tests and colposcopies.

Patients who qualify for Maine’s Family Planning Benefit program can receive covered family planning services at no cost. Applications are available at Maine Family Planning clinics and your local DHHS office. Fill out the application; bring it to your appointment with identification and four weeks’ worth of pay stubs.

Maine Family Planning provides affordable health care services, including contraception, abortion care, sexually transmitted infection testing and treatment, gender affirming health care, HIV prophylaxis, and primary health care. We provide training for health care professionals, advocate for reproductive health and rights, and support educators in providing evidence-based sex education.

For family planning services, we accept most private insurance companies at our health centers, as well as Medicare and MaineCare (Medicaid). If a service is not covered by your insurance, or you don’t have insurance, our sliding fee scale is used to lower costs. The sliding scale uses your household income as a guideline. The sliding scale option is possible because of state funding.

Once you’re an established patient (after your first appointment), you can pay your bill online. You’ll need to create a Patient Portal account or have the statement ID number from the paper statement.

For abortion services, we accept MaineCare and we can do a pre-eligibility check if you have private insurance to see if your plan covers these services. If you have a financial hardship, we can discuss financial assistance when you schedule an appointment.

If the schedule allows, we may accommodate walk-ins; however, to reduce wait time and assure you will be seen, we strongly encourage scheduling ahead by calling 207-922-3222, booking online, or if you are already a patient, scheduling through the Patient Portal.

There are three ways to access emergency contraception in Maine:

At Your Local Family Planning Clinic

There is no age restriction
Women and men can pick up (some kinds of) emergency contraception
Some forms of emergency contraception can be obtained without an appointment or prescription (some paperwork required)
For some forms of emergency contraception, you will need an appointment with a Nurse Practitioner

At the Pharmacy Counter

There is no age restriction to access emergency contraception from the pharmacy counter
Some forms are available without a prescription
Some forms require a prescription
A government issued ID may be required (for proof of age) for some types of emergency contraception
Only women can buy them
There needs to be a trained pharmacist available
You have to ask the pharmacists or clerk for them

Over the Counter

There is no age restriction to buy Plan B, one brand of emergency contraception, over the counter
Government issued ID is NOT required
Men and women can purchase them
Plan B should be found on shelves and any pharmacist or clerk can sell them
You don’t have to fill out any paperwork

Yes. We offer aspiration or “in clinic” abortions in our Augusta clinic and medication abortion (abortion with pills) at all of our clinics as well as through the mail. You can find information on our Abortion Services page. You can schedule an appointment by calling 207-922-3222.

In Maine, a minor can obtain confidential reproductive health care, including abortion care, without parental consent or notification. However, we encourage young people to involve their parents or a trusted adult in health care decisions whenever possible.

One great way to support Maine Family Planning is to become a patient and tell your friends and family about the services we offer. Additionally, you can check out our Support and Giving page and Join us in the Fight for Reproductive Justice!

All of our services are confidential. We encourage all teens to discuss their family planning visit with their parents or guardians. And we’re happy to report that more than half of our young patients tell us that they have talked with a parent or guardian about their decision to visit a family planning clinic.

Not all teens are able to discuss their sexual health decisions with a parent or guardian. These young people tell us that if their privacy is not guaranteed, they may not seek the care they want and need.

State family planning regulations guarantee confidential sexual health services for teens. These confidentiality policies for minors are supported by many respected health care organizations including the American Medical Association and the American Public Health Association.

Because of these confidentiality policies, if your child has received services from us, we are not able to discuss your child’s family planning visit or release medical records without the patient’s written consent.

If you’d like to have your records sent to us, please fill out this form.

If you’d like to have a copy of your records sent to another provider, please fill out this form.

FAQs

Family Planning Benefit

At Your Local Family Planning Clinic

At the Pharmacy Counter

Over the Counter

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