Providing Quality Family Planning Services

Recommendations of the CDC and the U.S. Office of Population Affairs

Providing Quality Family Planning Services (QFP) recommends how to provide family planning services so that individuals can achieve their desired number and spacing of children, increase the chances that a baby will be born healthy, and improve their health even if they choose to not have children. The recommendations describe

• What services should be offered in a family planning visit—i.e., contraceptive services, pregnancy testing and counseling, helping clients achieve pregnancy, basic infertility services, preconception health services, and STD services. 
• How these services should be provided by drawing upon existing recommendations and filling gaps where needed.
• Services available for female and male clients and special populations, such as adolescents, and provide detailed guidance on contraceptive services.
• Using the family planning visit to provide selected preventive health services, such as breast and cervical cancer screening.

Learn more about tools to help providers obtain the resources and support needed to implement the recommendations. For more information, visit Family Planning National Training Centers

QFP was developed collaboratively by CDC and the Office of Population Affairs of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The recommendations are based on a review of existing clinical guidelines published by federal agencies, such as CDC and U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), and professional medical associations.

The Quality Family Planning (QFP) Recommendations Integrate and Fill Gaps in Other Guidelines for the Family Planning Setting