One of the greatest parts about being the Contraception Guide is the opportunity to dispense accurate and truthful information to my readers. Just the other day, Angela emailed me wanting to know what kind of birth control pills she can buy over the counter; specifically, Angela wanted to know which birth control birth control pills do not require a prescription from a doctor.
Speaking in terms of the United States, ALL birth control pills require a doctor's prescription, so the unfortunate news for Angela is that there are NO types of oral contraceptives that are sold over the counter. There is, though, one exception, and that is Plan B One-Step(more commonly known as the morning-after pill) as this can be bought over the counter. The clincher - you need to be at least 17 years old to purchase it. Those of you under 17 still are required to obtain a prescription in order to buy Plan B One-Step. Most pharmacies stock this behind the counter, so you will need to provide proof of age to purchase it. Plan B One-Step consists of only one pill that is designed to provide a heavy dose of hormones in hope of preventing a pregnancy AFTER one has had unprotected sex (so it doesn't work like birth control pills do and is not a substitute for them).
More Resources:
- Over-the-Counter Contraception Options (for those of you who need birth control and don't have a prescription)
- More on: Plan B One-Step (what exactly is it)
- How To Obtain and Use Plan B One-Step
- Common Myths about the Pill
Updated April 11, 2011
Birth Control Pill Photo Courtesy of Stockbyte/Getty Images
I can’t believe how people are okay with forcing women to undress in front of doctors and have someone shove metal tools into their most private of places.
Women should have the choice of over-the-counter birth control instead of being forced into an inconvenient and uncomfortable visit ot the doctors.
I cannot believe that at this day and age, you still cannot get the pill over the counter, BUT you can get Plan B without an RX. This makes no sense to me. If you live near the border, I suggest you get your pills in Mexico for only a few bucks a pack.
We can get the Pill with a blood pressure check in Australia but doctors do pressure you to have pap tests, our doctors get target payments from the Government when they screen a percentage of their patients. It’s 65% at the moment…these payments are not made known to patients, of course. Did someone say conflict of interest!
The Pill is proven safe after decades of research, but in Australia’s case the Govt has invested millions in a cervical screening program probably for political reasons and succumbing to pressure from misguided but well-meaning groups. Cervical cancer is rare, the pap test intrinsically unreliable and that spells risk! Lots of false positives and unnecessary and possibly harmful biopsies and over-treatment. Lifetime risk of referral here for colposocpy (and usually some sort of biopsy) – 77%-78%, almost all are false positives – less than 0.50% benefit from pap tests. Some women are left with damage after unnecessary biopsies and LEEP – this can mean infertility, miscarriages, high risk pregnancy, premature babies, c-sections and psych issues.
As a low risk woman, I made an informed decision not to screen over 20 years ago.
Pap tests have nothing to do with birth control and should never get in the way. An unplanned pregnancy, ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage or abortion carries far more risk to our health. The Pill even has some protective benefits – against ovarian cancer.
I believe we should make the Pill available over-the-counter. Viagra is available at the pharmacist, no prescription required and men don’t need prostate checks before they can get Viagra or condoms.
It’s time paternalistic attitudes were struck down and all women had free and easy access to reliable birth control.
I think that all birth control pills should be over the counter. Women have rights to decide for themselves if they want to purchase those pills or not. They should not be restricted. I believe all women should have rights like men. Why is it that men walks around not caring where they stick their penises and can/cannot get the women pregnant while women NEED PERMISSION to GET PROTECTION!!! IT IS WRONG how people view gender rights!!! WRONG WRONG WRONG!!! Its the 21st century!!! EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE EQUAL RIGHTS!!!
I agree with you girls… You can buy cigarettes that are proven to kill you, with no problem, but you cant get birth control over the counter. Politics are stupid!
(Why is it that men walks around not caring where they stick their penises) – Why is it that you immediately have to go there like men are pigs?
I can’t believe that women have to get the permission of a doctor to protect their lives ,and their future, and then be subjected to criticism is they are under 18, this is crazy..!
Has anyone ever considered that some birth control pills may have adverse effects on some people? therefore, doctors need to prescribe the right type or kind of pill for the individual
Shanz, Doctors could do that, but your doctors have shown over and over that they use their prescriptive powers to force or coerce women into unnecessary and potentially harmful gyn exams AND they use the consult to force women into cancer screening.
All cancer screening has risks and only one person can decide whether the benefits exceed the risks – YOU!
Everyone has a different risk profile…for me, the risks exceed the benefits. IMO, the Pill fed into a paternalistic profession that saw another opportunity to take advantage.
At the moment you have some/many US women locked out of ALL medical care – you have women buying the Pill overseas or online, you have women coping with unplanned pregnancies, having abortions, miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies. So, these restrictions do not improve health care, they’re harmful and unnecessary and drive women away from all medical care.
Thankfully, things are finally changing for you – some ethical doctors are trying to free up BC – Dr Robert Hatcher from the “Managing Contraception” site has had some strong words for doctors who tie up the Pill and states your medical history and a blood pressure test is all that’s clinically required. See his comments by searching his name, pelvic exam and BC. Also, the WSJ carried an article recently, “Women after BC get unneeded pelvic exams”.
Dr Carolyn Westhoff is also speaking out and confirming that the routine pelvic exam is not clinically helpful and risks your health, leading to more hysterectomies and removal of healthy ovaries. See: “Is the routine pelvic exam obsolete?” and “Questioning the value of the routine pelvic exam”.
Now it’s up to every woman to help these doctors – never let a Dr coerce you into these exams.
Dr Joel Sherman’s medical privacy forum under womens’ privacy concerns has some great information – in the side bar.
Actually you are not giving accurate information you can purchase plan b over the counter at 17.
Viagra can be purchased everywhere, but birth control, proven safe over decades is still tied up with unnecessary and harmful barriers. It’s nothing more than the profession trying to hang onto control and maximize profits AND to force elective cancer screening. Men of course, have a choice about screening, yet we’re expected to behave like sheep.
It’s paternalistic nonsense – i rejected it years ago and get my Pills online.
It is disgusting that a woman can be coerced into unnecessary and harmful invasive exams to get the Pill – blackmailing women – if you refuse you risk an unplanned pregnancy or having an abortion.
People will say women have equal rights in society – what a joke! Female doctors are a huge disappointment – they’re just as bad.
When you go to the doctor and get a pill prescription do they actually do any kind of test that shows what birth control to use? NO they don’t so why can’t we buy them over the counter? Its all trial and error anyways
Guess i’ll just keep having babies then lol they keep giving me one months supply and I have to keep makin appts just for birth control that’s stupid
I’ve never been on birth control & I just turned 30, married at 21 TTC for 6 years unsuccessfully until my husband was diagnosed w/ xxmale syndrome. We’re taking time to chill and digest the news; maybe we will try our hand at donor sperm or adoption. Anyways, for the first time this year I’m going to ask for birth control, I know I can’t get pregnant, but I’d like to control my periods (we’re taking a couple of trips and I don’t want to be on the rag), I’m actually baffled that you still need a script for BC in this day and age. I mean I guess BC is linked to heart attacks, etc. so that might be why you need a script, but what doesn’t have horrible side effects nowadays? I’ve had a pap smear along with a transvaginal ultrasound (ladies you thought the pap smear and exam were uncomfortable. well, just hope you never have to have a trans ultrasound, you drink a liter of water and then pretty much have a huge dildo shoved up you and they take an ultrasound from the inside out; most uncomfortable to be diddled by a tech when you have to pee super bad! Honestly who comes up with this stuff? I can’t wait to have to have a mammogram where they squeeze your boobs into a machine that flattens them! I’d love to see guys have to have a nutogram! why don’t they have a torture device to put a guys sack in a vise and clinch those suckers flat!? huh? And why do guys only have to have prostate exams at the age of 40 but girls have to have Pap smear & exam starting at puberty, seriously? How traumatizing is that to be 13-16 years old with your legs up and your cash & prizes bald for the world to see while someone with their face in your crotch shoves metal things and fingers and such up in there? And who on god’s green earth would go into a profession like that? To be wrist deep in twat from 9-5, where’s that get fun?
God forbid 16 year old girls can’t get protection… >_>
actually, I’ve read reviews on PLAN B and a lot of women have said it DOESN’T work. They became pregnant and I don’t wanna take that risk
Plan B DOES work. Some pharmacists dispense sugar pills instead of actual Plan B pills. I have a feeling the rate of placebo dispensing is higher even than controversy has so far revealed. Pharmacists have been intruding their religious believes into their jobs and interfering with the health of their female patients without any right whatsoever. It’s a travesty.
To Girlpower, It does not matter whether or not BC pills are sold over the counter or not. you still have to go to an GYN to make sure everything is ok down there! so many diseases and infections are developed today, you need a check up. Plus when you have a baby you still have to get hands and tools stuck up you anyway. so just deal with it and make sure you’re healthy.
K, I disagree with you, sadly, many women have been brainwashed to believe this is about protecting their health – wrong!
Routine pelvic exams are of poor clinical value and carry risk, even Routine breast exam – not recommended at all, they lead to biopsies and there is no evidence of benefit.
Pap tests may be helpful for HPV positive women 30 and over – every 5 years, these are the only women who have a small chance of benefiting.
Sadly, young women don’t benefit from pap tests – no country in the world has shown a benefit, but all have evidence of harm from false positives and over-treatment. HPV testing – 40% of women under 30 would test positive, but almost all will have transient and harmless infections that will clear in a year or two. By age 30 the number of HPV positive women drops to 5%…so HPV testing is not usually recommended for women under 30. If women don’t have access to HPV primary testing, they should lobby the Govt for access asap – in the meanwhile, for those who wish to test, they might consider the Finnish or Dutch programs that offer better protection from false positives, but still offer sound protection from this small risk – 5 yearly pap testing from age 30 to 50 or 60.
The way forward is hrHPV primary triage testing – this testing will identify the 5% who might benefit from pap testing and offer much better protection for HPV negative women who can’t benefit from pap testing, biopsies etc
The Delphi Screener also enables women to test themselves for HPV and is already being used by Dutch women and it was introduced into Singapore and a couple of other countries recently.
This testing is also more likely to prevent these rare cancers.
Just because women may have children does not mean we have to get “used” to anything – invasive exams should be kept to a minimum – and only carried out when clinically necessary. Many women value their bodily privacy.