Over the past few years, colleges and universities across the country have made strides towards making emergency contraception, known commonly as Plan B, easily available to students on campus. Schools including Stanford, Columbia, George Mason, Pomona, Dartmouth, and UC Santa Barbara have installed vending machines in public places stocked with Plan B, condoms, pregnancy tests, and other sexual health accessories at discounted prices for students to access at any time.

Why is this necessary? Emergency contraception can be bought at a pharmacy or student health center, but often there is a feeling of embarrassment associated with purchasing Plan B. Pharmacists can choose not to stock Plan B or even refuse to sell it to young people all together, even though the FDA approved it for over-the-counter sale to all ages in 2013. These vending machines make sexual health services available to students who might be hesitant to request them from a cashier over the counter for these reasons. Pharmacies and health centers also have limited hours, typically operating at times when students are less likely to be sexually active. With a vending machine on campus open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, providing emergency contraception at a bulk discounted rate, we can provide protection to sexually active students on campus around the clock.

In the meantime, Plan B can be purchased at the Student Health Center (McCabe Hall) for $10 with an appointment and co-pay, or at CVS, Target, or Walgreens behind the counter for $49.99.

To take a quick survey on access to emergency contraception and help us collect data for a project proposal, see here.

To read more about a similar movement, see here.