News

June 2017.  On June 23rd President Andrzej Duda finally signed the bill proposed by the ruling party Law and Justice (PiS), which will change the status of the only EC pill currently available without prescription in Poland  (EC with ulipristal acetate, sold under the brand name ellaOne). The so called “Act of 25th May 2017…

June  2017. A new survey and a web discussion have provided new data  about whether and how Italian women’s awareness of and access to EC has changed following the availability of UPA EC without a prescription in 2015. According to this data, 90% of the women consulted consider EC useful and 91% think it is effective; but on…

9 June  2017.  Two studies about EC use in  Barcelona, were recently released. The Catalan health authorities looked at EC users’ profiles and other characteristics in sentinel pharmacies of the province of Barcelona, with the aim of improving the contraception program. This study found that the average age of women buying EC was 28 years old, and 56% of customers…

The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (FSRH) of the United Kingdom recently released a new guideline on emergency contraception. This new guideline, which includes recommendations on LNG and UPA EC pills as well as on the use of IUD for EC, has been developed by the FSRH and brings together evidence and expert opinion…

May 29 2017. Since mid 2015, and upon recommendation from the European Medicines Agency, EC pills with ulipristal acetate can be bought without prescription from pharmacies in Poland and everywhere else in the European Union except for Hungary. On May 25th, however, Members of Parliament in Poland voted in favor of a new bill which proposes,…

Together for Girls, along with partners PAHO, WHO, UN Women, Women Deliver, Save the Children USA, Care International, Child Helpline International, Jhpiego, SafeTrek, BD, and Cummins & Partners developed new Every Hour Matters campaign resources. The Every Hour Matters campaign aims to increase awareness about the critical importance of quickly accessing post-rape care. The resources are available…

A study published in The European Journal of Contraception & Reproductive Health Care assessed awareness and knowledge of EC among adolescents in Berlin, Germany. The authors conducted a cross-sectional survey among ninth graders in a convenience sample of 13 Berlin schools in which they assessed perceived and actual knowledge on the effectiveness, timeframe, and availability of…

The ASTRA Network has informed us that in mid-February 2017, the Polish Government announced that it accepted a project proposing to restrict access to the only ECP available over the counter (UPA ECP). This project is to be discussed in plenary and voted upon in the next session of the Sejm, possibly as early as March….

In February 2017, the European Parliamentary Forum on Population & Development launched the ContraceptionAtlas, a map scoring 45 European countries on access to modern contraception. Included among the examined factors are number of contraceptives available, what sort of information is available online, level of reimbursement, and availability of emergency contraception. According to the atlas, France is number…

In March 2016, pharmaSuisse and IENK (groupe interdisciplinaire d’experts/es en contraception d’urgence) published tools to facilitate EC counseling and provision among health care professionals, such as pharmacists and family planning staff. These tools, including a flow-chart (seen at right), are available in French, German, and Italian and can be accessed through the box on the…

According to a report published by the Italian Ministry of Health (available in English), the abortion rate in Italy dropped by 9,3% in 2015. In April 2015, the Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA) eliminated the mandatory prescription requirement for UPA EC pills for women older than 18, and in October 2015, AIFA eliminated the mandatory prescription requirement for LNG EC pills as well. This…

(December 16, 2016)  As of December 14, 2016, and for the first time in the history of Malta, dedicated emergency contraceptive pills are available for purchase behind the counter in Maltese pharmacies. UPA EC pills are already on the market, and LNG pills are expected in the coming weeks. Untill 2016, Malta was the only…