Attention

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not represent our advertisers

Wednesday, July 07, 2010

Should The Birth-Control Pill Be Sold Without A Prescription?

An over-the-counter version has long been called for, but it could soon be available if a group of practitioners and advocates have their way.

When Kelly Blanchard advocated to make oral contraceptives over the counter in a New York Times op-ed two weeks ago, she represented a decades-long movement among clinicians, researchers, and women’s-health advocates to remove prescriptions as a barrier to pill access. As early as 1993, Charlotte Ellertson—founder of Ibis Reproductive Health, of which Blanchard is now president—made a similar argument against the prescription status of oral contraceptives in the American Journal of Public Health.

Now a group of health workers and advocates are taking advantage of a mounting body of research that shows the pill could be safe for nonprescription use. They hope to have a proposal before the FDA within the year and an over-the-counter pill available in five years. And though their work focuses on female reproductive care, it offers a glimpse into what the future of American health care and medication could be.

GO HERE to read more.

6 comments:

ck1973 said...

Yes, it should be available, BUT and a big BUT, there needs to be a huge warning label in many languages on the box stating how to take it and the company will acceptassume NO liability if not used properly.

Anonymous said...

Absolutely it should be available over the counter. They are selling condoms, aren't they? Let's try to prevent pregnancies, not do something about them once they happen.

Chimera said...

Too dangerous,considering there are idiots who cant use something as simple as a condom properly.Typically a doctor will NOT prescribe the Pill to women who smoke,are overweight and/or over 35 for a simple reason-the risks of stroke multiply in these patients.There needs to be labelling that will release the makers of the Pills from liability if it is sold OTC.
Also,despite popular myth,there are no lack of effective birth control methods available besides the pill.The problem is that they are not being used properly or at all by alot of people.

Anonymous said...

It should be legal, it is no more difficult to take than any other medication. Read the instructions.

Anonymous said...

Yes, I think they should be over the counter. Oral contraceptives are very easy to use. You should read the instructions before use. They are very easy to use.

Anonymous said...

yes it should be legal but they should also give out shots that make cetain people unable to have kids until they can prove to society that they can raise them correctly. im tired of paying for other peoples kids because they were not responsible enough to use birth control