Indigenous women in Greenland sue Denmark over involuntary contraception in the 1960s and 1970s

By Jan M. Olsen, The Associated Press
Mar 4, 2024

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — A group of Indigenous women in Greenland has sued Denmark for forcing them to be fitted with intrauterine contraceptive devices in the 1960s and 1970s and demanded total compensation of nearly 43 million kroner ($6.3 million), their lawyer said Monday.

The 143 Inuit women say Danish health authorities violated their human rights when they fitted them with the devices, commonly known as coils. Some of the women — including many who were teenagers at the time — were not aware of what happened or did not consent to the intervention.

Continued: https://halifax.citynews.ca/2024/03/04/indigenous-women-in-greenland-sue-denmark-over-involuntary-contraception-in-the-1960s-and-70s/


USA – The anti-abortion playbook for restricting birth control

Contraception, like IVF, poses problems for those claiming personhood begins at conception.

By Rachel M. Cohen
Mar 3, 2024

The national debate over IVF, unfolding after an Alabama court decision prompted multiple clinics in the state to halt operations, prompts a question: What might be next? Could other fertility treatments and even birth control be under threat given that Roe v. Wade is no longer the law?

If the idea that birth control could be at risk in America strikes you as hard to believe, I understand.
There’s no proposed legislation on the table to ban it, and it does seem unbelievable that contraception — which an overwhelming majority of US women, including religious and Republican women, have used and support — could one day disappear.

Continued: https://www.vox.com/24087411/anti-abortion-roe-dobbs-birth-control-contraception-ivf


USA – First abortion, then IVF… and now birth control?

The GOP's been suffering on the issue of abortion already — Democrats can now clobber them with Alabama's IVF move

By LUCIAN K. TRUSCOTT IV, Salon
FEBRUARY 27, 2024

Man, one thing you can depend on Republicans for is that if you give them a shovel, they will just keep on digging.  Last week the Alabama Supreme Court did Republicans the favor (not!) of putting in vitro fertilization on the ballot for 2024. Two years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court did their Republican handlers the favor (not!) of putting abortion on the ballot by overturning of Roe v Wade.  Now Democrats will be able to use access to contraception as another issue to pound Republicans with, given the results of a new poll that shows how hugely unpopular Republican opposition to contraception is.

Republicans have been suffering on the issue of abortion already, losing several special elections to Democrats pushing the issue.  It’s a no-brainer. 

Continued: https://www.salon.com/2024/02/27/first-abortion-then-ivf-and-now-birth-control/


Canada – Deal on pharmacare bill has been reached with Liberals ahead of March deadline, NDP says

The legislation is a critical piece of the supply-and-confidence pact between the two parties, in which the NDP agreed to support the Liberals on key votes in the Commons

The Canadian Press
Mickey Djuric, Laura Osman and Mia Rabson
Feb 23, 2024

The federal Liberals and New Democrats have reached a deal that would allow every Canadian with a health card to access free diabetes medication and birth control, the NDP confirmed Friday.

The coverage is to be included in the first piece of a national pharmacare program, with legislation expected to be introduced in the House of Commons next week.

Continued: https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/pharmacare-deal-reached-liberals-ndp


Birth Control and Abortion in the Middle Ages

Birth control and abortion did take place in the Middle Ages and, like today, there were many medical and ethical issues that medieval people had to contend with.

Feb 18, 2024
Medievalists.net

In the Middle Ages you will find many opinions about what should or shouldn’t be done when it came to preventing pregnancies. However, the medieval period might be unique in that it is perhaps the only time when you can read the same author in one work condemning the use of birth control and in another giving directions on how to use it.

Religious values held the most important influence on the use of birth control, before and after one conceives. Taking their cue from the Biblical commandment to “Be fruitful, and multiply,” medieval Christianity saw the sole purpose of sex as a means to conceive children. Therefore, the idea that one could use birth control to stop conception was usually harshly condemned (and often equated as being the same as abortion). One ninth-century text, explains, “a woman who has taken a magic potion, however many times she would otherwise have become pregnant and given birth, must recognize herself to be guilty of homicide.”

Continued: https://www.medievalists.net/2024/02/birth-control-abortion-middle-ages/


Nigeria – Unsafe abortion fueling female infertility, maternal deaths, say gynaecologists

6th February 2024
By Janet Ogundepo

Maternal health experts have attributed the low contraceptive prevalence rate in the country to an increase in unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions.

In separate exclusive interviews with PUNCH Healthwise, they cautioned that the continuous rise in unsafe abortion would lead to increased cases of infertility and maternal deaths. Already, Nigeria has a maternal mortality rate of 1,047 deaths per 100,000 live births, according to the World Health Organisation.

Continued: https://punchng.com/unsafe-abortion-fueling-female-infertility-maternal-deaths-say-gynaecologists/


Malta – Forty, pregnant, and seeking an abortion

A trend is emerging in Malta among women aged 40 and over, who already have children and who experience unintended pregnancies despite using contraception. The Journal catches up with Doctors for Choice - Malta’s Dr Natalie Psaila.

The Journal
Jan 16, 2024

If you think that unwanted pregnancies are exclusive to teenagers, think again.
“An emerging trend that we’re observing is among individuals aged 40 and over, who already have children, who say that they have used contraception, but still experience unintended pregnancies,” reveals Dr Natalie Psaila, a Maltese doctor who make it to the BBC’s top 100 inspirational women in 2023. 

These women confirm using CE certified condoms but, despite these precautions, they still get pregnant, she pointed out. “These condoms shouldn’t fail easily but no contraceptive is fail-proof. This is why these couples are getting pregnant. Condoms have about 10% failure rate. Something like the pull-out method – a favourite with the Maltese – has a 40% failure rate.”

Continued: https://thejournal.mt/forty-pregnant-and-seeking-an-abortion/


Nigeria – Importance Of Implementing Effective Family Planning Programme After Childbirth

By Chioma Umeha
Jan 5, 2024

The importance of implementing an effective family planning programme after childbirth cannot be overstated. It is crucial to ensure the well-being of both the mother and the child.

By providing access to comprehensive family planning services, individuals can make informed decisions about their reproductive health and plan for the future.

This not only promotes the physical and emotional health of the family but also contributes to the overall development and stability of society.

Continued: https://independent.ng/importance-of-implementing-effective-family-planning-programme-after-childbirth/


Free contraception provision expanded in Ireland

BBC
Mon, January 1, 2024

A scheme offering free contraception in the Republic of Ireland has been expanded. Since its launch in 2022, the programme has offered free contraception to women, girls and people who identify as transgender or non-binary.

Initially open to those aged 17 to 25, the scheme's age limit was increased last year to 30. From Monday, it is also open to women aged 31.

Continued: https://ca.news.yahoo.com/free-contraception-provision-expanded-ireland-084149291.html


State Policy Trends 2023: In the First Full Year Since Roe Fell, a Tumultuous Year for Abortion and Other Reproductive Health Care

Kimya Forouzan and Isabel Guarnieri, Guttmacher Institute
December 19, 2023

In 2023, the first full year since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, state legislatures took key action on sexual and reproductive health. While many states increased access and piloted new policy solutions to expand and protect abortion and other sexual and reproductive health care, others sought to further curtail access.

The landscape of abortion access in the United States is fractured: Fourteen states enforce total bans, and seven more restrict access under limits that also would have been unconstitutional under Roe. As of December 13, 2023, another 22 states and the District of Columbia had enacted 129 measures to protect abortion access this year—the highest number of protections ever enacted in a single year.

Continued: https://www.guttmacher.org/2023/12/state-policy-trends-2023-first-full-year-roe-fell-tumultuous-year-abortion-and-other