The Truth About Emergency Birth Control

By Michele Stranger-Hunter of Portland, Oregon. Michele is the executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon.

Emergency Contraception (EC), sold over-the-counter in the United States as Plan B, is emergency birth control and it is the best-kept secret in Oregon. NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon (NPCO) wants to make sure the secret gets out! Emergency birth control is a second chance at prevention! Did you know women have up to 120 hours to prevent pregnancy after sex? There has been a deliberate and concerted effort by the right to blur the lines between Plan B—emergency birth control—and RU-486, an abortifacient. But emergency birth control does not cause an abortion, it prevents conception. Have you or someone you know ever missed two birth control pills and then doubled up on your next dose? You have just taken emergency contraception, or emergency birth control. Emergency birth control functions to prevent pregnancy by interfering with ovulation, fertilization or implantation and will not harm an existing pregnancy.

Now that emergency birth control is available over the counter, women can access it from family planning clinics and retail pharmacies. Unfortunately, there are many issues that prevent women from obtaining this essential medication. NPCO is striving to increase access by getting past these barriers. First of all, many Oregon women have not heard of emergency birth control or do not understand what it is or how it works. Research shows that only around 77% of Oregon women are even aware that emergency birth control exists. Of those women that know about emergency birth control, many do not understand how it works.

Even pharmacists are confused and many are concerned about stocking and dispensing this medication. Pharmacists in many areas are unintentionally providing false and misleading information about emergency birth control, while others are refusing to stock or dispense the medication. Many healthcare professionals are not explaining and recommending emergency birth control to their patients.

NPCO is solving this problem in collaboration with Oregon pharmacists and pharmacy groups, creating policies that allow emergency birth control requests to be met quickly and respectfully. This approach is collaborative instead of adversarial, offering outreach, education and training to pharmacists.

In February 2007, NPCO and the Oregon Board of Pharmacy (OBP) successfully secured one of the premier policies in the country, ensuring pharmacy access to emergency birth control. NPCO also orchestrated an emergency birth control training module that has been presented around the state to over 350 pharmacists.

NPCO is assessing exactly where the underserved communities are so that we can respond in ways that will most effectively impact emergency birth control access, with a particular focus on Oregon’s rural areas. Given the state’s widely varying regional geography and population, NPCO will address region-specific barriers to access through tailored solutions in conjunction with individual communities and activists on the ground.

NPCO urges women (and men too) to start the conversation about emergency birth control, making it a part of everyday conversations. Oregonians need to talk with their friends and families about what emergency birth control is, how it works, and how to ensure that it is available to all Oregon women. Emergency birth control truly represents a second chance at prevention.

If you want to know more about emergency birth control in your area, or be a part of our ongoing work regarding emergency birth control, contact NPCO today at [email protected].