Table 2.
Current Contraceptive Status, Method Used, and Reasons for Contraceptive Non-Use
| Contraception method | Women veterans, age 20–44 2014–2015 (n = 2302)* |
Age-adjusted US population, age 20–44 2011–2013 (n = 3972)† |
US population, age 15–44 2011–2013 (n = 5610)‡ |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | (95% CI) | % | % | |
| USING CONTRACEPTION § | 62.3 | (60.3, 64.3) | 68.4 | 61.7 |
| Highly effective methods | 34.4 | (32.5, 36.3) | 38.3 | 27.8 |
| Female tubal sterilization | 12.5 | (11.2, 13.9) | 21.7 | 15.5 |
| Male sterilization | 6.0 | (5.1, 7.0) | 8.4 | 5.1 |
| Intrauterine device | 13.6 | (12.2, 15.0) | 7.6 | 6.4 |
| Subdermal implant | 2.2 | (1.6, 2.8) | 0.5 | 0.8 |
| Moderately effective methods | 17.4 | (15.9, 19.0) | 16.5 | 20.4 |
| Pill | 11.2 | (9.9, 12.5) | 13.6 | 16.0 |
| Patch or contraceptive ring | 2.9 | (2.2, 3.6) | 1.4 | 1.6 |
| 3-Month injectable (Depo-Provera™) | 3.3 | (2.6, 4.0) | 1.6 | 2.8 |
| Less effective methods | 10.2 | (8.9, 11.4) | 13.4 | 13.5 |
| Condom | 6.0 | (5.0, 7.0) | 8.7 | 9.4 |
| Periodic abstinence | 1.4 | (0.9, 1.9) | 1.1 | 0.8 |
| Withdrawal | 1.8 | (1.2, 2.3) | 3.3 | 3.0 |
| Other methods‖ | 1.0 | (0.6, 1.4) | 0.3 | 0.3 |
| NOT USING CONTRACEPTION | 37.7 | (35.7, 39.7) | 31.6 | 38.3 |
| Surgically sterile (hysterectomy) | 7.4 | (6.4, 8.5) | 1.1 | 0.7 |
| Infertile (non-surgical)¶ | 3.9 | (3.1, 4.7) | 2.5 | 2.2 |
| Pregnant or postpartum | 2.9 | (2.2, 3.5) | 5.8 | 5.0 |
| Seeking pregnancy | 3.9 | (3.1, 4.7) | 5.4 | 4.5 |
| Never had intercourse | 1.0 | (0.6, 1.5) | 1.9 | 10.8 |
| No intercourse in 3 months before interview | 12.5 | (11.2, 13.9) | 8.6 | 8.2 |
| Intercourse in 3 months before interview | 5.9 | (4.9, 6.8) | 6.4 | 6.9 |
| Missing | 0.2 | (0, 0.4) | 0 | 0 |
CI, confidence interval
*Contraceptive method used in the month of interview among women veterans aged 20–44 who had a VA primary care visit within the 12 months prior to interview
† Age- specific contraception use estimates (contraceptive method used in the month of interview) were obtained from the 2011–2013 NSFG data for women aged 20–44 with at least a high school education or GED and were applied to the VA population age distribution. Age was categorized in 5-year groups as follows: 20–24, 25–29, 30–34, 35–39, and 40–44. The weighted sample size is 45,947,000
‡ Contraceptive method used in the month of interview among US women aged 15–44; data reported in Daniels K, et al.: Natl Health Stat Report, no. 86, 2015. The weighted sample size is 60,887,000
§ A total of 7 women (0.3) reported using contraception but did not specify method type and are thus not included in individual method reporting
‖ Other methods included spermicide, diaphragm, cervical cap or Today sponge, female condom, and emergency contraception
¶ For the VA population estimates, we only had available information about infertility for women