You can get a birth control implant at most OB/GYN offices, family planning clinics like Planned Parenthood, community health centers, and many primary care practices. The implant (brand name Nexplanon) is a small, flexible rod inserted under the skin of your upper arm, and the procedure takes only a few minutes. It’s now FDA-approved for up to five years of pregnancy prevention.
Types of Clinics That Offer the Implant
The birth control implant is widely available across several types of facilities. Your options include:
- OB/GYN offices: Most gynecologists are trained to insert and remove the implant.
- Planned Parenthood health centers: These clinics offer implant insertion and removal, often on a sliding fee scale. You can schedule online or call 1-800-230-PLAN.
- Community health centers and Title X clinics: Federally funded family planning clinics serve patients regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.
- University and college health centers: Many campus clinics offer the implant, which can be convenient for students.
- Primary care offices: Some family medicine doctors and internists are trained to place implants, though not all are. Call ahead to confirm.
To find a location near you, search for “birth control implant near me” on Planned Parenthood’s website or use the HRSA health center finder (findahealthcenter.hrsa.gov) to locate a federally qualified community health center in your area.
Who Can Insert the Implant
Only certain providers are certified to place Nexplanon. The qualified provider types are medical doctors (MDs), doctors of osteopathic medicine (DOs), nurse practitioners (NPs), physician assistants (PAs), and certified nurse-midwives (CNMs). Each must complete a specific training program before performing insertions. When you book an appointment, the front desk can confirm that a trained provider is available at that location.
What Happens at the Appointment
One of the biggest advantages of the implant is how little prep work it requires. According to CDC guidelines, no pelvic exam, blood work, or other testing is needed before insertion in healthy patients. Your provider may take your weight and blood pressure, but that’s typically it. You do not need a separate consultation visit beforehand, so many clinics can insert the implant on the same day you come in.
The insertion itself takes a few minutes. Your provider numbs a small area on the inside of your upper arm with a local anesthetic, then uses a special applicator to slide the rod just beneath the skin. Most people feel pressure but not pain. You’ll have a small bandage afterward, and some bruising at the site is normal for a week or two.
If your provider isn’t sure whether you might be pregnant, they can still insert the implant that day and have you return for a pregnancy test two to four weeks later. The benefits of starting contraception typically outweigh the small risk in that scenario.
Cost and Insurance Coverage
Under the Affordable Care Act, most health insurance plans are required to cover FDA-approved contraceptive methods, including the implant, with no copay or coinsurance when you use an in-network provider. That means the device, the insertion, and the office visit should all be fully covered. This applies even if you haven’t met your deductible yet.
Without insurance, the total cost for the implant and insertion ranges from $0 to $2,300, depending on the facility. Community health centers and Title X clinics use income-based sliding scales, so if you’re uninsured or underinsured, you may pay significantly less. Removal later costs between $0 and $300. If you want a new implant placed at the same time, many providers will do the removal and reinsertion in a single visit.
Before your appointment, call your insurance company or the clinic’s billing department to confirm coverage. Ask specifically whether the provider is in-network, since going out of network could leave you with a large bill.
Access for Teens and Minors
If you’re under 18, you can still get a birth control implant in most of the country. Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia explicitly allow all minors to consent to contraceptive services without a parent’s permission. Another 24 states permit minors to consent in specific circumstances, such as being married, being a parent, having been pregnant, or meeting a maturity standard.
Only four states have no explicit policy on the books, but even there, providers commonly follow the “mature minor” doctrine and provide contraception without parental consent. Confidentiality protections exist because public health experts recognize that many teens will avoid seeking contraception if they’re required to involve a parent. If you’re unsure about the rules in your state, your local Planned Parenthood or community health center can walk you through what’s required.
Who Should Not Get the Implant
Most people can safely use the implant, but a few conditions rule it out. You should not get the implant if you are currently pregnant, have active breast cancer, have serious arterial or heart disease, have a history of stroke, or have significant liver disease. Unexplained vaginal bleeding should be evaluated before insertion.
Certain medications can also make the implant less effective. These include some drugs used to treat HIV, tuberculosis, and epilepsy, along with the herbal supplement St. John’s Wort. These medications speed up how your body breaks down hormones, which can lower the implant’s protection. Let your provider know about everything you take so they can confirm the implant is a good fit.
Removal and Replacement
When it’s time for removal, whether at the five-year mark or sooner, you’ll go through a similarly quick procedure. Your provider numbs the area, makes a tiny incision, and slides the rod out. The whole process usually takes under five minutes. If you want to continue using the implant, a new one can be placed through the same small incision during the same visit.
You don’t have to return to the same clinic that originally placed the implant. Any provider trained in Nexplanon removal can do it. Planned Parenthood, your OB/GYN, or a community health center are all options. Fertility returns quickly after removal, with most people able to become pregnant within weeks.