A recent study found that, despite conservative handwringing, women with access to no-cost birth control methods are no more likely to have multiple sexual partners. In fact, the study actually showed a statistically significant reduction in the number of sexual partners some participants had before receiving contraceptives. When the study began, 5.2 percent of women reported more than one sexual partner in the previous month — but halfway through the study, only 3.5 percent had been with multiple partners. By the end of the study that number was reduced to 3.3 percent. Women did report a slight increase in their monthly sexual encounters a year after receiving free birth control, but the study indicates that the frequency fell within the expected boundaries of this cohort.
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