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The Quickie: Coming Soon: First Over-the-Counter Birth Control Pill

For Immediate Release: March 5, 2024


Welcome to “The Quickie”

Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.

In today’s Quickie: First over-the-counter birth control pill hits the market and PPAZ resumes abortion care in Tempe.

COMING SOON: FIRST OVER-THE-COUNTER BIRTH CONTROL PILL: Yesterday, Perrigo announced that Opill — a progestin-only birth control pill approved for over-the-counter (OTC) use for people of all ages — will hit retail stores later this month. Like all birth control pills, Opill is highly effective at preventing pregnancy. Last July, Opill became the first birth control pill to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for OTC use in the United States. In response to the news, Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America released the following statement: 

“This is historic: Patients across the country will soon be able to find one more safe, effective birth control option on pharmacy shelves. Over-the-counter availability of birth control is an important step toward more access for more people, but we can’t stop there. To truly be within patients’ reach, OTC birth control methods like Opill must be covered by insurance, without a prescription requirement, and be made widely available at safety-net providers like Planned Parenthood health centers.”

Read the full release here and more about Opill in USA Today.

 

PLANNED PARENTHOOD ARIZONA RESUMES ABORTION CARE IN TEMPE: Today, Planned Parenthood of Arizona (PPAZ) will resume providing abortion in Tempe, over a year after pausing services in the wake of the Dobbs decision. Dr. Jill Gibson, chief medical officer for PPAZ, told the Arizona Republic, “What we have decided as an organization is that there's simply no other choice, that abortion has always been a reality. Abortion will always be a reality, and it is our responsibility to, even in the face of this adversity, continue to provide care for our patients.” 

Abortion in Arizona is still under threat, with abortion banned after 15 weeks of pregnancy. And soon, the Arizona Supreme Court will decide whether a near-total ban will take effect instead. If the near-total ban goes into effect, the consequences would be immediate and devastating for Arizonans. 

Read more in the Arizona Republic.

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