Make Birth Control Available Over the Counter!

Women in America deserve the right to access birth control easily and affordably. This right is being hampered by current regulations on oral contraceptives, which require a doctor’s exam and prescription - sometimes several times a year! Access and cost are the major deterrents to women who don’t use contraceptives – and making birth control readily purchasable would give greater access to those who are high risk for unintended pregnancy.

That’s why I join the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) in calling for over-the-counter availability for oral contraceptives. After more than 4 years of discussion and research, the ACOG has found that birth control is safe, and that easier access to oral contraceptives could reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies.

Making birth control pills easier to get will translate into fewer unwanted pregnancies, and also fewer abortions. These unplanned pregnancies remain a major problem in the United States, accounting for approximately 50% of all pregnancies. And such pregnancies don’t just interrupt lives -- they also cost a fortune, with a price tag of approximately $11.1 billion per year, according to an analysis published in the academic journal Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health.

As a woman, I don’t want to depend on a doctor and a monthly visit to a pharmacy to be able to access birth control. My demand is simple – allow women to purchase birth control pills in the same way condoms can be purchased, and empower us to decide when we will have children.

Sincerely,



Chelsea Sloan

References:

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/news/articles/2012/11/21/obgyns-endorse-over-the-counter-birth-control-pills

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-204_162-57552743/ob-gyn-society-says-birth-control-pill-should-be-sold-over-the-counter/

http://www.acog.org/Resources_And_Publications/Committee_Opinions/Committee_on_Gynecologic_Practice/Over-the-Counter_Access_to_Oral_Contraceptives