A snapshot in time during COVID-19
May 8, 2020. Last April, the European Parliamentary Forum for Sexual and Reproductive Rights, and the European Network of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, issued Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights during the COVID-19 pandemic. The joint report looks at the pandemic’s impact on access to essential SRHR services, and includes recommendations for decision-makers.
With regards to contraception, and among others, the report recommends governments:
- to adapt their policies, technical guidance and service-delivery models to guarantee access to SRHR during the crisis, by allowing (among others): telemedicine for SRHR consultations and access to contraception (particularly emergency contraception) without prescription; and removing medically unnecessary administrative obstacles.
- to address immediate needs for reproductive health commodities and personal protective equipment (PPE) and, in the medium term, engage with UNFPA, RHSC, manufacturers and other global organisations to exchange information on supply chains, manufacturing and transportation so as to anticipate any potential future stock outs.
Downloaded the full document here.
The report is based on surveys conducted from mid-March to mid-April 2020. The authors acknowledge that the situation is dynamic and rapidly changing, and that some situations described in the report may have evolved since it was written, particularly in relation to government reactions.
