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Study Finds Spanish Women Highly Value Hormonal EC

Data from the study “Women’s perception of emergency contraceptive pills” are now available. The study examined Spanish women’s opinions and knowledge on hormonal EC. The researchers’ findings included the following: 84% of Spanish women consider that having the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP) available is a major breakthrough for woman. 76% considered that the ECP is…

Germans debate prescription status of LNG EC

In Germany, the discussion continues over whether levonorgestrel-only emergency contraception should be issued in the future without a doctor’s prescription. Currently, a prescription is still needed in order to purchase emergency contrantraception, and only physicians can prescribe it. At a hearing of the Health Committee of the Bundestag in April, testimony was given by health…

Scottish health group calls for EC in schools

A health group in Scotland is calling on government Ministers to allow school nurses to dispense emergency contrantraception to students.  The Scottish Sexual Health Lead Clinicians Group suggests that nurses could dispense condoms and emergency contraception to school children in order to help reduce teen pregnancy rates, which have been holding steady at 7.1 per 1,000…

German bishops support EC for rape victims

In a welcome announcement, Cardinal Joachim Meisner of Cologne, Germany stated that he supported the use of emergency contrantraception in Catholic hospitals to treat rape victims since it did not induce abortions. This statement comes after two Catholic hospitals in Germany received widespread negative press after refusing to treat a female rape victim because they could…

Center for Reproductive Rights releases fact sheet on contraceptive access in the European Union

The Center for Reproductive Rights recently released a fact sheet titled “Access to Contraceptives in the European Union: Human Rights, Barriers and Good Practices,” which outlines different barriers to access in the region and highlights some examples considered best practices. Although states are obligated under international law to provide women with access to a full…

ECEC goes to Copenhagen

ECEC will be attending the European Society of Contraception and Reproductive Health’s first global conference on contraception, reproductive and sexual health in May in Copenhagen, Denmark. The sessions that are specifically focused on emergency contraception are highlighted below: Friday, 24 May 2013 16:30 – 17:30 Sponsored Symposium HRA Pharma: The unpredictable ovulation: critical in evolution and central…

Publications

This page contains a selection of resources developed by ECEC as well as partner organizations that are relevant to EC access and availability in the European region. If you would like to share EC-related publications from your country, please email us. Resources and publications: Counseling tools  Guides and technical documents Fact sheets Training resources Issue…

Guidelines

The diversity in EC clinical guidelines lead to inequalities in access to reliable EC options for women in our region. In 2012-2014, ECEC collected information on availability of EC guidelines in European Union (EU) countries. We found that most EU countries had some sort of published document or guide on EC, aside from Austria, Croatia,…

Emergency contranception availability in Europe

Across Europe, different policies regarding access to emergency contraception (EC) are in place. This affects the legal status of EC generally as well as which type of emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs) are available and how they can be accessed. Changes in access in the European Union zone Until December 2014, there were varying degrees of…

What is emergency contraception?

Emergency contraception (EC), also known as postcoital contraception or “the morning after pill” refers to contraceptive methods women can use to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sexual intercourse. Access to EC is essential for ensuring women’s reproductive health. Currently, there are four types of EC methods available in Europe: Additionally, in settings where there are no…

Who We Are

Established in 2012, the European Consortium for Emergency Contraception (ECEC) is a network of Europe-based organizations and individuals working in the field of emergency contraception (EC) research, service provision, and advocacy within a broader sexual and reproductive health and rights approach. In 2011, a number of experts and organizations came together with the aim of…