Pharmacy Access to Emergency Contraception in Ohio
 The Plan B brand of emergency contraception was initially approved by the FDA for use in 1999, giving women in the US another valuable option to use to prevent unintended pregnancy. In 2006 the FDA approved it for sale as an over-the-counter medication for people 18 and older. Because women under 18 still need a prescription, Plan B is kept behind the pharmacy counter, thus requiring women who are getting the medication without a prescription to still interact with pharmacy staff to get access to Plan B. Both before and after the medication became available without a prescription NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio and organizations around the country received complaints from women who had been denied access to Plan B (and other birth control prescriptions) by pharmacists who had personal objections to contraception. To determine the extent of the barriers that women face when trying to access Plan B the NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio Foundation conducted a state-wide survey of pharmacies in Ohio. This survey consisted of both a phone and "secret shopper" survey of pharmacies around the state. Questions were asked of the pharmacist or pharmacy staff member about the stocking of Plan B, possibility of pharmacist refusal, and general knowledge of how Plan B works. Here are some of the findings: in both the phone and "secret shopper" surveys 30% of pharmacies did not stock the medication or were out of stock at the time of the survey. The average cost of Plan B was $43.00. Of the pharmacies that had Plan B in stock at the time of the phone survey, 4.5% of the respondents indicated that a refusal was possible because someone on staff had objections to the medication. Only 8% of respondents could correctly identify the three possible ways that Plan B works to prevent pregnancy. Although all scientific evidence points to the fact that Plan B has no effect on an established pregnancy and can only work if taken before a pregnancy begins, 25% of pharmacists or pharmacy employees stated that it is the same as the "abortion pill."
Want to read more? You can download the executive summary or the full report. Having trouble downloading the files? Contact our office at 614-221-2594 or info@prochoiceohio.org and we can mail you a printed copy of the report.
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