UK: The Anti-Abortion Movement Is Coming for Contraception Too

There is a pattern here, and we are calling it out.

09 Jul 2026
Alisa Berry Ryan

This week, reproductive rights news has been full of the same old anti-abortion playbook: spread stigma, muddy the facts, pretend healthcare is dangerous, and then act shocked when people demand easier access to basic reproductive care.

The latest target? The morning-after pill.

Emergency contraception works best the sooner it is taken. Yet access still depends on whether your local pharmacy is open, whether you can travel, whether you can pay, and whether you are forced into a conversation at a counter when what you need is safe, effective, time-sensitive healthcare.

Continued: https://abortionrights.org.uk/the-weekly-spotlight-the-anti-abortion-movement-is-coming-for-contraception-too/

09.07.2026

Commentary

Alisa Berry Ryan

College of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare

emergency contraception

Poll suggests UK public supports morning-after pill being sold in corner shops

Rebecca Whittaker
Wed, July 1, 2026

The morning-after pill should be sold in corner shops and petrol stations like paracetamol, doctors have suggested, after a poll highlighted public concerns about accessing the contraceptive.

Almost half of the UK population (43 per cent) say it would be difficult to access emergency contraception on a Sunday, while almost two-thirds (65 per cent) believe it would be difficult to obtain after 10pm.

Results also suggest only 7 per cent of people believe it would be difficult to access emergency contraception during the daytime on a weekday, with perceived barriers rising dramatically outside typical opening hours.

Continued: https://ca.news.yahoo.com/poll-suggests-uk-public-supports-094351671.html

01.07.2026

News

College of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare

Dr Zara Haider

emergency contraception

morning after pill

Europe

United Kingdom

New Research Finds Potential Alternative to Abortion Pill Mifepristone

The research could further complicate the polarized politics of abortion because the drug in the study is the key ingredient in a pill used for emergency contraception.

By Pam Belluck and Emily Bazelon
Jan. 23, 2025

A new study suggests a possible alternative to the abortion pill mifepristone, a drug that continues to be a target of lawsuits and legislation from abortion opponents.

But the potential substitute could further complicate the politics of reproductive health because it is also the key ingredient in a contraceptive morning-after pill.

Continued: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/23/health/abortion-pill-ella.html

India – Why we shouldn’t ban the morning-after pill

If unreasonable abuse of the drug is feared, creating awareness would be the way to go about it

Angellica Aribam
15 Oct 2024

Social media was recently abuzz after a special report in this publication went viral. It referred to a subcommittee formed by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) that would likely impose a ban on over-the-counter sales of all hormonal contraceptives, including emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs) in India. It evoked massive outrage, as it is a nightmarish move that impacts the bodily and sexual autonomy of all women.

The policymakers seem to have taken “irrational overuse” as a reason for proposing this ban. It paints an inaccurate picture of women abusing these pills, which are associated with tremendous side effects, not as a means of survival but recreationally. Undoubtedly, it would be a gross misinterpretation of on-ground realities and neglect the issue of reproductive health inequity in India. Additionally, the introduction of a prescription from a doctor would be utopian, completely disregarding the stigma attached to sex in our society.

Continued: https://www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/2024/Oct/15/why-we-shouldnt-ban-the-morning-after-pill

15.10.2024

Commentary

Angellica Aribam

Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation

emergency contraception

Femme First Foundation

hormonal contraceptives

Poland shows the difficulties of trying to reverse an abortion ban

By Kate Brady and Gerrit De Vynck, Washington Post
January 27, 2024

PRENZLAU, Germany — Only 30 miles separate the two clinics where gynecologist Maria Kubisa works, but what’s legal at her clinic on this side of the border would be criminal at the clinic back in Poland.

So women have been crossing over to seek help from Kubisa on this side, especially in the past three years, since a Polish court backed by a ring-wing government imposed a near-ban on abortion.

Unlocked: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/01/27/poland-abortion-12-weeks-donald-tusk/

Canada – How pro-life bias is limiting reproductive healthcare access in rural Ontario

Right-to-life groups are increasing stigma and barriers to preventing and eliminating pregnancies

By Mary Baxter
August 2, 2023

After the condom broke, Amanda’s* boyfriend hurried to the drugstore to get the morning-after pill. Anxiety eddied as Amanda waited for him to return. The teenage couple had experienced pregnancy scares before but had never resorted to emergency contraception. A baby couldn’t be in the picture yet, Amanda knew.

In 2018, Amanda was 19 years old. The teen from Chatham-Kent, a rural municipality in southwestern Ontario, had dropped out of high school in Grade 11. They struggled with mental health and lived with their parents. They were unemployed. Their boyfriend, the same age, hit them.

Continued: https://broadview.org/abortion-access-rural/

02.08.2023

Commentary

Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada

abortion stigma

access to abortion

Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights

anti-choice bias

anti-choice deception

anti-choice lies

anti-choice misinformation

anti-choice stigma

April Rietdyk

B.J. Kivell

British Columbia Humanist Association

Carolyn Martin

Chatham-Kent Public Health

Christine Button

emergency contraception

Frédérique Chabot

Jen Belcher

Joyce Arthur

Lambton Public Health

Ontario Medical Association

Ontario Pharmacists Association

Refuge CPC

Right to Life Kent

sexual and reproductive health services

Sheila dunn

Shore Centre

TK Pritchard

Women’s College Hospital

Luxembourg to Offer Free Contraception from 2023

The idea dates back even to Antiquity, but how feasible is it?

March 24, 2023
By NNN

tarting on 1 April 2023, a host of contraceptives in Luxembourg will become completely free, including the morning-after pill. Indeed, according to an official statement, people will be able to get a 100% reimbursement for the morning-after pill, even if they do not have a prescription.

Moreover, the reimbursement is not tied to age, meaning that the policy will aim to provide universal contraceptive health coverage.

Continued: https://nnn.ng/luxembourg-to-offer-free-contraception-from-2023/

24.03.2023

News

Claude Haagen

European Contraception Atlas

Honduras lifts decade-long ban on ‘morning after pill’

March 8, 2023
Reuters

TEGUCIGALPA - Honduran President Xiomara Castro signed an executive order on Wednesday ending a ban of more than 10 years on the use and sale of the "morning after pill," fulfilling a campaign promise long-awaited by feminist groups.

Castro, the country's first female president, took office last year after running on the promise of rolling back the country's restrictive reproductive policies.

Continued: https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/honduras-lifts-decade-long-ban-morning-after-pill-2023-03-09/

08.03.2023

News

clandestine abortions

emergency contraception

International Women's Day

FDA specifies Plan B emergency contraceptive does not cause abortions

By Brenda Goodman, CNN
Fri December 23, 2022

The emergency contraceptive pill sold as Plan B One-Step does not prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the womb and does not cause an abortion, the US Food and Drug Administration said Friday. The agency said it is updating the information included on the leaflet provided with the drug.

Previously, the product label had said the pill might prevent a fertilized egg from implanting. Anti-abortion advocates had used the statement to claim emergency contraception could cause an abortion.

Continued: https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/23/health/fda-plan-b-label-abortion/index.html

23.12.2022

Featured

News

emergency contraceeption

Food and Drug Administration

implantation of fertilized egg

Quebec woman speaks out after pharmacist denies her morning-after pill due to his religious beliefs

'It's my decision to make ... It's my body," says 24-year-old woman

CBC News
Aug 05, 2022

A young woman from Saguenay, Que., says she left a local pharmacy feeling shamed after a pharmacist refused to sell her emergency oral contraception, better known as the morning-after pill, because it went against his religious beliefs.

"I felt bad, I felt really judged," said the 24-year-old woman, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal.

Continued: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/morning-after-pill-denied-religious-beliefs-1.6541535

05.08.2022