Author: Cristina Puig

September 2021. BBC3 recently reported the case of  two women in the United Kingdom being denied emergency contraception from their local pharmacy, which triggered serious criticism from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) president: “Pharmacy refusal to provide emergency contraception is ‘completely unacceptable’”, said professor Claire Anderson. In 2017, the RPS updated its own  guidance on EC prescribing. In…

September 2021. The French Health Minister recently announced that in 2022, access to contraception will be free for women up to 25 years old. This policy that makes access to some contraceptive methods free of cost (no charges for medical appointments to get a prescription, checkups, tests, and the method itself) extends now to all…

July 2021. According to the Spanish Society of Contraception (SEC), use of emergency contraception pills dropped among women aged 25 to 30 and 35 to 40, from 38% to 2,7. Read more here:

June 2021. On June 23rd, the European Parliament voted in favor of a landmark report presented by the Croatian Member of European Parliament (MEP)  Predrag Fred Matić on “the situation of sexual and reproductive health and rights in the EU”. This report is the first of its kind in almost 10 years to give such…

May 2021. Findings from ECEC’s and You Act’s participatory survey on emergency contraception access through community pharmacies in Europe, were presented on a poster at the European Society of Contraception and Reproductive Health (ESCRH) virtual seminar held on May 7 and 8, 2021. We thank the ESCRH colleagues for this opportunity to share our work.

May 2021. According to a report from One.com in Malta, emergency contraception pills could only be bought in one of the five pharmacies visited on a recent Saturday afternoon. The report takes a look at EC accessibility in Malta five years after it was first registered and commercialised in the country, and the role conscientious…

April 2021. According to news on Raitre, for over 20 years and until 2016, the Vatican invested in companies that produce emergency contraception pills. The Vatican doctrine defends life from the moment of conception. Emergency contraception pills (popularly known as “the morning-after pill”) do not interfere with life after conception. Emergency contraception pills inhibit ovulation:…

April 202. According to UNFPA’s 2021 State of World Population report, published on April 14, nearly half of women in 57 low income countries are denied the right to decide whether to have sex with their partners, use contraception or seek health care. This is the first time a United Nations report focuses on bodily autonomy: the…

February 2021. The Radio Télévision Suisse program 15 Minutes, looks at the Swiss model of emergency contraception dispensation through pharmacies, in which consultation is mandatory and paid for by the client. Journalist Coraline Pauchard looks at the pros and cons of this model, in a report that you can listen here (in French).    

February 2021. The World Health Organization just added two chapters to its Family Planning Handbook. One of them addresses contraception delivery during an epidemic. These are some of the recommendations: Providers should ensure that individuals make voluntary and informed choices, and that privacy and confidentiality are respected. Multiple doses of emergency contraceptive pills can be provided. Many…

January, 2021. Scientists at University of Utah Health found that hormonal intra uterine devices (IUDs) were comparable to copper IUDs for use as emergency contraceptives. According to the researchers, the finding would support adding hormonal IUDs to current emergency contraception options. Read more here.