Ample research shows that family planning contributes to the well-being of individuals, families, and broader society as well. Family planning helps women and men maintain reproductive health; allows women to avoid unintended pregnancies; and assists families in determining the number, timing, and spacing of their children. Even so, many low-income individuals find it difficult to pay for these much-needed services, highlighting the critical role played by the Title X Family Planning Program, the nation's only federal program exclusively devoted to providing family planning services. In 2007, the Office of Family Planning asked the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to provide a critical review of the Title X Family Planning Program, focusing on assessing the administration and management of the program, including whether it is serving its intended populations, and determining to what extent the program needs to reexamine the scope of its services and objectives.
In its 2009 report A Review of the HHS Family Planning Program: Mission, Management, and Measurement of Results, the authoring committee acknowledges the program's success in providing critical services to those who have the most difficulty obtaining them. However, the report outlines several aspects of the Title X program's structure, including its goals, administration and clinic evaluations, that need to be improved if the program is going to truly meet the needs of individuals and families and improve their overall reproductive health and well-being.