The Effect of a Free Family Planning Program on Fertility.

Abstract In this paper, I estimate the effect of access to family planning clinics on birth rates. The Louisiana Family Planning Program opened more than 140 clinics between 1965 and 1970. By 1971, a family planning clinic was operating in each Louisiana county. Exploiting the variation in dates when clinics began operating in each county, I employ two-way fixed effects and staggered difference-in-differences designs to assess the impact of family planning access on birth rates. I find that clinic openings led to a 5 to 7 percent decrease in birth rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]