NPR: https://npr.org/sections/health-shots/2024/03/04/1235404522/opill-over-counter-birth-control-pill-contraceptive-shop
Health

The first over- the-counter birth control pill heads are in stores

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Access to Birth Control: The Over-the-Clock Opill Campaign Against Prescription and Obtuary Measures in the United States

This is for people who may not be able to visit their health care provider to get a prescription in order to prevent pregnancies. They may be in between medical appointments, or they may be teens who otherwise aren’t able to access reproductive health care.

Since the Supreme Court overturned the national right to an abortion in 2022, the accessibility of contraception has become an increasingly urgent issue. But long before that, the move to make a nonprescription pill available for all ages had received widespread support from specialists in reproductive and adolescent health and groups.

The director of the National Latina Institute for reproductive justice said in a statement that over-the-counter access to birth control will greatly reduce the barriers.

Conservative groups generally oppose measures that increase access to abortion and contraceptives, but the approval of Opill saw little opposition from the public. The opposition was mainly from Students for Life Action.

In a survey in 2022 by the health care research organization KFF, more than three-quarters of women of reproductive age said they favored an over-the-counter pill, primarily because of convenience.

Opill: Birth Control Pill Contraceptive Shop for the First FDA Appropriate Use of a Nonprescription Dose

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After nine years of effort, we were approved by the FDA in July 2023 to move forward. And it’s been kind of full-steam ahead since that day,” says Triona Schmelter, an executive at Perrigo, which manufactures Opill.

This is not a new kind of pill. According to the Food and Drug Administration, the drug was approved for prescription use in 1973. But this is the first birth control pill that has been approved for use without a prescription from a health care provider.

Yes. It’s 98% effective if taken correctly, just like other oral contraceptives. After taking the first dose, it should work within 48 hours. There are possible side effects such as headaches, bullocks, and cramping.

Source: First over-the-counter birth control pill heads to stores

Opill: An Online Family Planning Solution in the Era of Online Retail Online and In-Store Ordering, with a Free Birth Control Pill

“Today we start shipping Opill to our retailers for their brick-and-mortar stores,” says Schmelter. It will be available in the coming weeks in-store in the family planning aisle, she says, as well as on online marketplaces and Opill.com.

A month’s supply of Opill has a recommended retail price of $19.99. It will be a little cheaper to buy in bulk, however, with a three-month supply costing $49.99. A six month supply will be available for $89.99 at Opill.com.

Birth control pills are free for people with insurance without copay, so they may choose to pay out of pocket if the pill shows up on their insurance.

“It doesn’t require a doctor’s visit, which means it doesn’t require time off work or potentially a babysitter or finding a doctor,” Schmelter says. “You can walk into any local retailer and, in the family planning section, pick it up at your convenience.”

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