If youve been seeing tweets and headlines about over-the-counterbirth controllately, you might be really excited.
Hell yes to making contraception easier to get…right?
What would over-the-counter birth control really look like in practice?
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Would it be a good idea for most people?
How do the arguments against it hold up?
Here, experts answer these questions and more.
For starters, what kinds of birth control could be sold over the counter?
No matter how smart and determined you are, its best to leave some things to professionals.
What are the possible benefits?
First, theres the obvious preventingpregnancything.
in health policy and is a Darney/Landy Fellow at ACOG, tells SELF.
This was a significant decline from 51 percent of unintended pregnancies in 2008.
The takeaway is still that increasing contraception access would likely help bring down the unintended pregnancy rate.
Hormonal contraception offers other possible benefits besides preventing pregnancy.
(Heres a ton of informationabout the various potential benefits from hormonal birth control pills in particular.)
Over-the-counter status could also help peoplestayon the pill or use it most effectively, Dr. Horvath says.
Women know what is best for them; they know what is best for their health, Stewart says.
Would it be safe to sell birth control over the counter?
Experts agree that over-the-counter birth control pills would generally be safe, with the benefits outweighing the possible risks.
AsACOGpoints out, no drug is risk-free.
But serious side effects of hormonal contraceptives, especially birth control pills, are very rare.
We have decades of evidence showing [their] safety, Dr. Horvath says.
So we know that they are safe enough to be made available over the counter.
But research has found this risk to be low overall, according toACOG.
Evidence has repeatedly shown that women are capable of effectively self-screening for any possible contraindications, Dr. Horvath says.
First researchers asked the participants if they thought they were medically eligible for combined oral contraceptives.
Finally researchers tested the accuracy of those self-screenings with nurse-practitioner evaluations and blood pressure measurements.
Results from the first screeningwhen participants didnt have the medical checklistwerent great.
Only 56 percent of those with contraindications said they had them.
But the medical checklist gave enough information to help most of the participants accurately gauge their eligibility.
Since it contains no estrogen the chances of serious side effects like blood clots are much lower.
But the minipill is slightly less effective than the combined version, according to theMayo Clinic.
But would this make people less likely to use more effective methods of birth control?
One concern that some people have about over-the-counter birth control is that it could almost betooconvenient in a sense.
Sure, it could happen.
Its possible to support both causes.
Will people stop getting health screenings if they dont need to see doctors for BC?
But the evidence suggests otherwise.
Prior research shows theres good reason to take them at their word.
Would over-the-counter birth control be more expensive?
Many experts believe the most worrisome potential implication in making birth control over the counter is higher costs.
(While the Trump administration weakened this mandate, it still largely stands.
Since the ACA mandate only applies to prescription drugs, insurance companies wouldnt have to cover over-the-counter birth control.
Women should not have to trade affordability for access, Dr. Horvath says.
Stewart agrees that this point is essential to any policy conversation about making birth control available over the counter.
Fortunately theres a possible solution to the cost problem.
An effort to prevent a cost/convenience trade-off is already underway.
For many people, this scenario would truly offer the best of both worlds.
This, Stewart says, should be a part of basic health care.
