Morning-After Pill Use Increases In U.S.

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Main Category: Sexual Health / STDs
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 14 Feb 2013 - 11:00 PST


Morning-after pill use has notably increased in the United States. About 1 in 9 younger women have taken the pill after sex.

The finding came from the first government report to analyze emergency contraception since it received approval 15 years ago.

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) released the results on Thursday.

Kimberly Daniels, from the National Center for Health Statistics, and team conducted a survey involving over 12,000 females aged between 15 and 44 years.

Morning-after pill use was reported by 11% of the subjects who'd had sex between 2006 and 2010. In 2002, just a couple of years after the pill was available to adults with a prescription, only 4% of people reported use.

The FDA released a report in 2006 stating that after 3 years of debate, they decided to approve sales of the morning-after contraceptive pill without a prescription for people over the age of 18.

Since the pill is easier to get now that females 18 and older do not need a prescription, and because of its media coverage of experts trying to raise the age limit to buy it over-the-counter, its has increased, the scientists explained.

Fifty percent of the participants who took the pill said it was because they'd had unprotected sex. The majority of the other half said it was because a condom broke or they were scared their other birth control method might not work.

The scientists discovered that women in their 20s had a higher probability of taking the morning-after pill. Results showed that 1 in 4 had taken it.

About 1 in 5 females who never got married used the pill, versus 1 in 20 females who were married.

Of the subjects who had taken the morning-after pill:

• 59% reported they had taken it only once
• 24% reported two times
• 17% reported three or more times

The pill is mostly taken by white females and more educated women, according to the results. However, James Trussell, a researcher from Princeton University who has researched on the area, said that it's not surprising, reported CBS.

"I don't think you can go to college in the United States and not know about emergency contraception," Trussell explained.

One college in Pennsylvania actually has a vending machine where students can purchase the pills.

The morning-after pill stops ovulation from occurring and should be taken within one to three days after sex. The drug is a form of birth control pill, but at a much higher dose. However, it is not the same as the abortion pill, which ends a pregnancy.

There are at least five versions of the morning-after pill on the market in the U.S. which can cost from $35 to $60, depending on the brand name.

A different report was also released Thursday by the CDC on overall contraceptive use which indicated that the number of females taking birth control pills had stayed the same, while the use of intrauterine devices, injections, and patches had increased.

Written by Sarah Glynn
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

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