Launch of bpas campaign for affordable, accessible EC
The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (bpas) recently launched a campaign in the UK calling for LNG EC to be made available directly on pharmacy shelves at an affordable price. Currently in the UK, women can only obtain EC from behind the pharmacy counter after a consultation with a pharmacist, and LNG EC costs up to £30, which is more than anywhere else in Europe with the exception of Ireland. bpas’s campaign is calling for EC to be reclassified as a General Sales List medication so that it can be placed on pharmacy shelves for women to buy without a consultation. The organization is also calling for all those involved in the pricing of EC to consider how they can provide women with a much more affordable product.
While women in the UK can obtain EC free of charge from GPs and sexual health clinics through the NHS, these are not suitable options for many women. They might not be able to get an appointment in time, and funding cuts mean that sexual health clinics are increasingly restricting services or shutting down altogether. Some pharmacies run local schemes providing EC for free, but they often only serve young women and only those who live in certain areas.
To launch the campaign, bpas created a humorous video highlighting that for some women in the UK it would be cheaper to fly to France to buy EC than purchase it in their local community. Click here to see the video, and for more information on the campaign, please visit http://www.justsaynon.org.uk/.