More American women are using effective, long-term contraceptives -- namely, intrauterine devices (IUDs) -- a new Guttmacher Institute study indicates.

IUDs are implanted in a woman's uterus and can prevent birth for up to 10 years and tend to have a one percent or less annual pregnancy rate, meaning they're one of the most effective contraceptives on the market.

The only problem?

The ladies who could benefit most don't seem to be using them.

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American Protestants apparently want to be just like American Catholics.

According to Religion News Service, they too are pissed about Barack Obama's Health and Human Services Mandate, which requires that insurance companies provide birth control coverage.

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Here's some important info if you don't want a kid: neither the transdermal patch, vaginal ring, nor pill are the best way to go about birth controllin'.

According to a recently released New England Journal of Medicine study, intrauterine devices(IUDs), under-the-skin implants, and Depo-Provera shots work better -- they have a 1 percent failure rate, compared to the other methods' 9 percent rate.

Before ringing up your gyno in a fit of panic -- OK, we're so not the only ones who read about this and flipped a shit -- here are some more deets about these popular contraceptive choices.

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Not allowed near prom activities.

Yesterday, the Voice reported on an interesting story coming out of Brooklyn, in which a principal of a high school there offered to hand out condoms (rubbers, jimmy-hats, whatever they're calling them these days) at the school's prom, presumably in a bucket, presumably near the door. Darryl Roscoe argued that the measure was "necessary" and "the right thing to do," especially on a night that can get as rambunctious as Silvio Berlusconi's bunga bunga parties in Milan. 
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Prophylactics often cause polemics.

And this seems to be the case in Bed-Stuy, where a high school principal's decision to pass out condoms at prom has caused quite a bit of conversation.

"This is necessary," Darryl Rascoe, Bedford-Stuyvesant Preparatory High School principal, told the Daily News. "It's practical and it's the right thing to do."

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Uproar over Barack Obama's Health and Human Services mandate, which basically requires that insurers provide contraception, has hardly come to an end, and a major pro-religion advocacy group has taken the battle against the birth control clause to court.

This law firm, the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, is also hosting a rally today at the Federal Hall National Memorial, located at 26 Wall Street.

The Washington, D.C.-based organization has organized before upcoming arguments over Obamacare in the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Though slutgate seems to have come to somewhat of a conclusion -- Rush Limbaugh probably won't call a young woman a "slut" again until he calls a young woman a "slut" again -- it's helpful to remember what laid the groundwork for this most recent culture war battle: Eisenstadt v. Baird a little-discussed 1972 court ruling that OKd birth control for singles. (Hell yeah!)

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Eisenstadt V. Baird on this very day 40 years ago. The case stems from the arrest of Bill Baird, who got a felony charge in Massachusetts for giving contraceptive foam to an un-married woman.

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​With criticisms of stop-and-frisk practices on the rise, one piece of legislation is targeting a police practice that doesn't involve searches for drugs or weapons.

Lawmakers in Albany have sponsored a bill that would stop courts from using the possession of condoms as evidence of prostitution. Currently, if cops stop someone on the street that they suspect is a prostitute, search the person, and find condoms, those contraceptives can be used as evidence in criminal court that the person was in fact engaged in sex work.

Those working to stop this policy aren't just going after this practice because of what they see as a problematic argument -- that condom possession implies prostitution. The lawmakers argue that it's also a major health concern, because it discourages individuals from carrying condoms on them, which in turn promotes unsafe sex.

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Rick Santorum might think that contraception is sinful; that women shouldn't fight in combat; that rape babies are a gift from god; and that it's totally cool for his kids to hold their miscarried sibling -- but that doesn't mean he's anti-woman claims his wife, Karen Santorum, in an upcoming CBS interview.

Karen Santorum gets mad when people insult Rick's record on women's issues. (Random aside: Does she regret taking his name now that it means "the frothy mix of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex" in common parlance?)

Anyway, Karen, who has worked as a neonatal ICU nurse, got a law degree, and published two books, does not want you to think her hubby is an inept misogynist tool.

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Rush Limbaugh apologized to Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke Saturday, who he called a "slut" for testifying in favor of contraception coverage. "My choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, I created a national stir," he said in a statement. "I sincerely apologize to Ms. Fluke for the insulting word choices." Meanwhile, Limbaugh continues to see fallout as a result of his continued attacks on Fluke, in which he's likened her to a "prostitute" and mocked President Barack Obama for calling to thank her for her testimony. Quicken Loans and five other advertisers have all pulled ads from Limbaugh's show. [Rush Limbaugh, ABC, NYT]

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