Campaigners Warn of Exploitation Risks From Over-the-Counter Contraceptives Pill

Undated photo of a pharmacist stocking shelves at a chemist. Julien Behal/PA Wire

A family campaign group has expressed major concerns about the potential effects of a plan to free up the NHS that allows millions of women to access free over-the-counter contraceptive pills without without having to see a GP.

Starting next month, women in England can obtain a first prescription of the pill by visiting their hgh street local pharmacy, the NHS announced on Thursday.

The move will give women greater choice over where to get the pill and will free up appointments in GP surgeries, the NHS said.

If women opt for the combined oestrogen and progestogen pill, they will have a check-up with a pharmacist to record their blood pressure and weight.

No checks are needed for the mini-pill (progestogen-only), which is also the case in other settings, NHS England added.

The Family Education Trust, an institute investigating and informing public discourse on issues affecting the family, told The Epoch Times that it believed the new plan is “a dream to anyone looking to exploit women and girls.”

Pharmacies

Pharmacies need to sign up for the new service, meaning it will not be available immediately everywhere in England.

NHS chief executive, Amanda Pritchard, said: “This is really good news for women—we all lead increasingly busy lives, and thanks to this action, rather than making a GP appointment, they can simply pop into their local pharmacy when they need or want to access contraception.

“We will also be expanding services so that more health checks are available for patients on the high street, which is not only better and easier for patients but also frees up NHS time for more GP appointments for those who need them most.”

Prescription figures for 2022/2023 suggest there were almost 3 million prescriptions for the combined pill and more than 4 million for the mini pill. Contraception services are free and confidential in the UK.

The most common type of pills are Monophasic 21-day pills such as Microgynon and Yasmin, both manufactured (both Bayer)  as well as Marvelon (Organon owned by Merck). 

The NHS England is using different plans and reforms to free up its service. 7.7 million people are on NHS waiting lists in England, the highest since records began in 2007.

Victims of Sexual Abuse

Lucy Marsh, communications and PR officer for the Family Education Trust told The Epoch Times by email that it was concerned makes it easier for women to become victims of sexual abuse, with no opportunity for doctors to spot red flags during a medical appointment.

Ms. Marsh pointed to its 2017 report Unprotected, which looked at how the normalisation of underage sex enabled thousands of girls to be abused by Pakistani-origin offenders towns such as Rotherham.

“We found that the routine prescribing of the pill to girls under 16 without their parent’s knowledge or consent contributed to child sex abuse being ignored by police and social workers for years,” she said.

The official inquiry into the child abuse scandal in Oxfordshire, said that ‘The girls lost the ability to consent or make their own decisions due to grooming. The law around consent was not properly understood, and this was compounded by contraception being prescribed (albeit legally) long before the law states children are legally able to have sex. There was a professional tolerance to knowing young teenagers were having sex with adults.”

She noted that since 1985, under Gillick competence, it has been Department of Health policy to permit the confidential provision of contraception to young people under the age of 16 without the knowledge or consent of their parents.

“This has meant that one in 20 girls between the age of 12-18 are now on the pill,” she said.

“This policy really must be a dream to anyone looking to exploit women and girls and we would urge the health secretary to rethink this decision,” she added.

PA Media contributed to this report.