OTC Birth Control Pills–Just What The Doctor Ordered

Last week, at its annual meeting, the American Medical Association voted to join the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the American Academy of Family Physicians in calling on the Food and Drug Administration to make birth control pills available over the counter. As I have written here, ACOG and AAFP have been calling for making hormonal contraception available over the counter for decades. While late to the game, the AMA’s endorsement of OTC birth control is a welcome development.Two drug companies, HRA Pharma and Cadence Health have been working since 2016 to develop new birth control pills and intend to seek FDA approval to market them over the counter.In our October 2020 white paper, Michael Cannon and I point out birth control pills are available without a prescription in more than 100 countries. Bipartisan support has been building in Congress to make birth control pills available over the counter. In this January 2020 Los Angeles Times guest column Michael Cannon and I point out that switching a drug from prescription‐​only to over‐​the‐​counter status typically causes its price to fall.Hannah Cox and Brad Polumbo of the Foundation for Economic Education argue today that, with the future of the 1973 Roe v Wade decision in doubt, it is more important than ever that women be able to avoid unwanted pregnancies. To that end, over‐​the‐​counter hormonal contraceptives are just what the doctor ordered.