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Birth Control to Be Sold Over the Counter in New York Pharmacies

By Grace Ashford

Mar 19, 2024

The News

New Yorkers will soon be able to get a year's worth of hormonal birth control from pharmacies without a prescription.

The New York State Department of Health issued an order on Tuesday formally authorizing the measure, which was passed last year by the State Legislature and signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Under the law, pharmacists can dispense three different types of hormonal birth control to both New York residents and out-of-state visitors: birth control pills, vaginal rings and contraceptive patches. They will also offer counseling and information about the medication as well as the risks of H.I.V. and other sexually transmitted diseases.

Officials say the aim is to remove barriers to contraception access and safeguard reproductive freedoms while other states restrict them.

"This is about access to care, it's about the individual autonomy, it's about health equity," said James McDonald, the state health commissioner. "But it's also about protecting reproductive rights, which are all very core to the mission of the New York State Department of Health."

The Context

New York is hardly the first state to authorize pharmacists to distribute birth control, following more than two dozen others, including New Jersey, California and Oregon, that already allow some version of the practice.

But few states have done as much to establish themselves as safe harbors for reproductive care.

Just before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, Ms. Hochul allotted $35 million to support health care workers, anticipating an influx of out-of-state abortion seekers.

Soon after, lawmakers passed a bill to protect abortion providers from out-of state litigation and took the first steps toward enshrining a right to abortion in the State Constitution.

This year, in her proposed budget, Ms. Hochul called for spending $100 million to support reproductive health care providers.

At a press event at a pharmacy in Albany on Tuesday, she framed the birth control news as part of a larger commitment to women's autonomy and reproductive rights.

"Here in New York, you have the power to walk into a pharmacy -- just like we are here today -- and to make that decision that 'I want this. I want to be able to control the process. I want to control my life,'" she said.

Why It Matters

In the nearly two years since Roe was overturned, more than 20 states have either banned or sharply restricted abortions . Women's health advocates say the restrictions only underscore the importance of making contraception widely available and accessible.

While many Democrats and some Republicans have voiced support for protecting reproductive freedoms at the federal level, Republican leadership in the House of Representatives has stymied all efforts to date. Many national Republicans -- and former President Donald J. Trump , who is again the presumptive Republican nominee -- have indicated that they would support a nationwide abortion ban of some kind.

Democrats are hoping that the issue will play a key role in November's election, in which President Biden will face off against Mr. Trump.

What's Next

New York's rule is on the books officially as of Tuesday, though it may take a few weeks for pharmacies to get things up and running.

State officials said they expected roughly 85 percent of pharmacies to participate.

This November, New Yorkers will be asked to vote on the Equal Rights Amendment , which would formally enshrine protections from gender-based discrimination, including restrictions on reproductive care, into the State Constitution.

That measure, which would also ban discrimination on the basis of race, disability, gender identity and sexual orientation, would be the first of its kind.


This article was downloaded by calibre from https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/19/nyregion/new-york-birth-control-over-the-counter.html


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