Here's how the Polk County Health Department is offering free morning-after pills

The Polk County Health Department is now offering morning-after pills to residents at no cost.

The state's largest county public health department is now offering free emergency contraceptives , along with condoms and lubricants, to anyone who visits the agency at its Des Moines location.

"We want women to have access to tools to manage their health care," said Addie Olson, public health communications officer for the Polk County Health Department. "We learned that emergency contraceptive was available at no cost to us through the partnership with the Family Planning Council back in June. When we learned of their availability, we were quick to say, 'Yes.'”

More: Iowa clinics rushed to treat women before abortion ban began. Some couldn't make it in time

As first reported by Axios , the free emergency contraceptive will be provided for the foreseeable future by the Family Planning Council of Iowa, a nonprofit that oversees a network of federally funded family planning and reproductive health care clinics in the state. It's part of that group's effort to make family planning resources more readily available to Iowans now that the state's strict abortion ban has taken effect .

Iowa's new law prohibits abortion, with some exceptions, when fetal cardiac activity can be detected, at about six weeks of pregnancy.

Now that the legal landscape has dramatically shifted in Iowa, the Family Planning Council says it has been working to make family planning resources more available to residents. That includes partnering with businesses and other entities to provide birth control at no cost.

“There are a number of different businesses where emergency contraception is available throughout the metro area,” said Allison Smith, executive director of the council. “Some of them don't necessarily want to be publicized, but it's really important for folks to have access to that resource, and especially at lower cost or no cost.”

Why is Polk County offering free morning-after pills?

Under the new program, which launched last month, the Polk County Health Department is offering a levonorgestrel tablet, or a type of emergency contraceptive that can be taken to prevent pregnancy, for free in the public bathrooms of the health agency's lobby.

The health department also is offering sharps containers and bleach kits for needles as a harm reduction tool to encourage safer injection practices, Olson said.

The building is at 1907 Carpenter Ave. in Des Moines.

The levonorgestrel tablet can be taken up to 72 hours after unprotected sex. This type of emergency contraceptive, also known as the morning-after pill, functions as back-up birth control to prevent pregnancy. This medication does not cause an abortion .

The pills are available at no cost and with no questions asked. Plan B, a common, brand-name morning-after pill, costs $40 to $50 at retail pharmacies . Generic versions cost as little as $11.

Smith said emergency contraceptives continue to be available for free or at low cost at health care clinics across the state that receive Title X funding. A full list of clinic locations can be found on the Family Planning Council of Iowa's website, fpcouncil.org.

Still, gaps in transportation or other logistical barriers prevent many Iowans from easily reaching the clinics, Smith said.

This also comes after Iowa saw an alarming drop in the number of residents accessing family planning services after a state law blocked abortion providers from federal funding to offer free birth control, testing for sexually transmitted infections and other health care.

"No amount of funding for or access to contraception will ever negate the need for abortion. Both are essential health care services that must be made available to everyone who seeks them," Smith said. "However, in our state, where access to abortion is being severely limited, it is even more important for people who want contraception to be able to affordably and easily access it."

Family Planning Council of Iowa offers free pregnancy tests following abortion ban

The Family Planning Council of Iowa's new partnership with the county health department is the latest in a series of initiatives the group has undertaken to ramp up access for Iowans to sexual and reproductive resources at no cost.

Reproductive health kits are still available to order for free from the Family Planning Council of Iowa's website . The kits, which the group launched last year, provide two doses of emergency contraceptives, condoms, lube and an educational booklet.

So far, the council has handed out or mailed hundreds of kits across Iowa and has provided thousands more at community events or clinics, according to its website.

This year, the group began including 12 pregnancy tests in each reproductive health kit. Smith said the goal was to provide a year's worth of pregnancy tests in order to help women detect a potential pregnancy early.

“Folks don't have a lot of time,” Smith said. “They need to be aware of their pregnancy status and as we've all heard, most people don't necessarily know that they're pregnant at six weeks. So if they are not seeking pregnancy, then being able to access contraception or the tools to prevent that in the first place is a good place to start.”

The council purchased 11,525 strips through a recent fundraiser, which means 960 Iowans will be provided a year’s supply of pregnancy test strips for free. The fundraiser has officially ended, but Smith said the group is still accepting donations to expand the project.

The group also is in the early stages of exploring other opportunities to make sexual and reproductive health resources more available to residents. Smith said she hopes it can soon establish vending machines in the metro area that offer emergency contraceptives at a low cost, as well as other items such as pregnancy tests, condoms or menstrual supplies.

Michaela Ramm covers health care for the Des Moines Register. She can be reached at mramm@registermedia.com , at (319) 339-7354 or on Twitter at @Michaela_Ramm .

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Here's how the Polk County Health Department is offering free morning-after pills