The federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is set to consider whether multiple companies’ versions of oral birth control medication should be made available to consumers over the counter, removing requirements to access such pills through a prescription only.
HRA Pharma Paris submitted a request to the FDA on MondayIt to allow over-the counter use of its daily oral hormonal birth control pill. Cadence Health, another birth control pill manufacturer whose product is in wide use, has reportedly been in “close dialogue” with the agency about changing its requirements away from prescription-only to over the counter, with plans to submit an application to do so to the FDA later this year.
Oral birth control medications are designed to be taken every day. FDA currently allows only one type of oral birth control to be sold over the counter. is emergency contraceptionThe Plan B pill is meant to be taken within three days of unprotected sexual activity.
The FDA has not yet made a statement regarding the potential to make contraceptives more readily accessible. This measure, many reproductive rights experts believe, would make it significantly easier to take control of your body, especially for those who live in marginalized areas that face additional barriers to accessing the medication.
In an earlier year, I wrote to the FDA to urge them to consider over-the-counter birthcontrol. several Democratic members of Congress said that such barriers to obtaining medication “are disproportionately borne by people of color, immigrants, LGBTQ+ people, low-income individuals, young people, and people in rural communities — individuals who have faced and continue to face the greatest inequities.”
“We urge FDA to review applications for over-the-counter birth control pills without delay and based solely on the data and defend against political interference during the review processes,” the lawmakers said in March. “The health and well-being of people capable of pregnancy across America is at stake.”
On Monday, Iffath Abbasi Hoskins, president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, responded positively to the news that the FDA was considering making two companies’ products available over the counter, especially in light of the Supreme Court’s recent decision to upend nearly 50 years of abortion rights in the U.S.
“We know that birth control is not a solution to abortion bans, as people need abortion care for many reasons,” Hoskins said. But the change in how individuals purchase birth control medication could help more people to “control their own reproductive futures,” she went on.
Research shows that lowering prescription requirements for birthcontrol medication would be a huge benefit to a large number of Americans. One in three women who have ever tried to get a prescription for hormonal contraception say they’ve faced obstacles throughout the process, citing difficulties that include the distance to reach a health provider, costs for the appointment, not having the time to take off work or school, or simply not having a health care provider to give out a prescription. One in four teens and adults who don’t currently use birth control say they would be willing to purchase daily pill medication if it were available over-the-counter.
“Improved access to safe, effective birth control is critical to people’s reproductive rights and health,” said Kelly Blanchard, president of Ibis Reproductive Health, In an op-ed Truthout In 2019. “Making a birth control pill available over the counter will help ensure everyone can get the birth control they need, when they need it.
