Reproductive Health Access in Rural North Carolina
A two-page legislative brief written for distribution to NC lawmakers and community advocates — plain-language framing grounded in NC-specific data, designed to travel fast and land clearly.
Reproductive Health Access in Rural North Carolina
The problem this solved
The organization needed a document that could travel — to legislative offices, community meetings, and coalition tables — without requiring anyone to already understand the policy landscape. Most policy briefs are written for people who are already in the room. This one had to bring people into the room.
Rural NC counties face compounding barriers to reproductive health access: provider shortages, transportation gaps, and a policy environment that has shifted quickly since 2022. The ask was to make that complexity readable in under five minutes.
What was delivered
- Two-page formatted brief designed for print and digital distribution
- Plain-language framing of NC-specific data and provider landscape
- Three concrete, actionable policy recommendations with supporting rationale
- Visual layout designed for quick scanning — key stats called out, no walls of text
Since the Dobbs decision in 2022, North Carolina has become a destination state for reproductive health care — while simultaneously facing a provider shortage that limits access for residents across rural counties. In 27 of NC's 100 counties, there is no OB-GYN provider. Transportation to the nearest clinic averages 47 minutes for rural residents, compared to 11 minutes for urban residents.
North Carolina's rural hospitals are under significant financial pressure. Reproductive health services — including prenatal care, family planning, and maternal health — are among the highest-volume service lines in rural facilities. When access contracts, so does utilization, and with it, the revenue that keeps rural hospitals solvent. This is not only a health equity issue. It is a rural economic...
The full brief includes three policy recommendations, NC county-level data, and a legislative talking points section.
Need something like this?
Policy briefs work best when they're built for a specific audience and a specific ask. If your organization needs a document that can travel to legislative offices, coalition tables, or community meetings — that's exactly what this work is for.