FDA Panel Supports OTC Birth Control Pill

The Food and Drug Administration hope to receive final approval to put an over-the-counter birth control pill on store shelves nationwide. The contraceptive is in the final stages of full-throated approval from the FDA.

According to Just the News: An advisory panel at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday said that a decades-old birth control pill should be sold without a prescription, paving the way for the first over-the-counter contraceptive pill to be approved nationally.

Advisers to the FDA have voted unanimously to recommend making the Opill birth control pill available for over-the-counter use without a prescription.

The move will now be considered by the full agency, which is expected to make a final approval decision by late summer.

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) May 10, 2023

In a unanimous vote, the FDA advisers supported pharmaceutical manufacturer Perrigo’s request to sell its daily birth control pill, Opill, over the counter.

The recommendation is non-binding, but if the FDA follows it, then Opill would become the first contraceptive medication to be moved from a prescription-only basis to the store shelves.

Progestin-only pills like Opill have been around for nearly 50 years❗️ There’s literally decades of data supporting their safety & efficacy. The prescription requirement serves as a medically unnecessary barrier to care – let’s #FreeThePill so everyone can get the care they need. pic.twitter.com/8dpUezh7EZ

— Free the Pill (@freethepill) May 9, 2023