Abstract
Oral contraceptives (OCs) are one of the safest and best-studied medicines on the market. Yet, in many countries, a prescription is required to obtain OCs, often creating an unnecessary barrier to accessing this highly effective contraceptive method. A growing body of evidence suggests that over-the-counter (OTC) access to OCs is both safe and effective, and that removing the prescription barrier may increase access and reduce unintended pregnancies. Surveys among US women indicate interest in obtaining OCs in pharmacies without a prescription, and research has shown that women are accurately able to identify most contraindications to use of OCs using simple tools such as checklists. Pharmacists also can help women to screen for contraindications and provide information about method use. However, in the USA, some women might lose insurance coverage of OCs if they became available OTC. OTC availability is a promising new provision model that could improve access to OCs and should be studied more rigorously.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
This article was supported by a grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation as part of their support for the Oral Contraceptives Over-the-Counter Working Group. The author has no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.