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| 'No prescription' needed for Pill | |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| The contraceptive pill is to be given out by pharmacists without prescription in a new pilot scheme, the minister in charge of reviewing health care says. | The contraceptive pill is to be given out by pharmacists without prescription in a new pilot scheme, the minister in charge of reviewing health care says. |
| Lord Darzi said the government would work with chemists to ensure "robust standards" and appropriate training. | Lord Darzi said the government would work with chemists to ensure "robust standards" and appropriate training. |
| The pill is currently only available with a prescription, but pharmacies are able to dispense "the morning after pill" without a doctor's signature. | |
| The Royal Society of Medicine said it was "delighted" by the news. | The Royal Society of Medicine said it was "delighted" by the news. |
| The move had been urged by the society's president, Lady Finlay. | |
| She said: "We have this catastrophic tidal wave of teenage and unwanted pregnancies, we are the worst in Europe, we cannot ignore that." | |
| The UK has the highest teenage birth rates in Western Europe - about twice as high as in Germany, three times as high as in France and six times as high as in the Netherlands. | |
| Lady Finlay said chemists were fully capable of ensuring whether the contraceptive pill was right for a patient, and what type would suit her best. | |
| Choice needed | |
| The decision to launch a pilot scheme also follows rising complaints about closures of family planning clinics. | |
| New initiatives to improve women's access to contraception are extremely welcome Anne WeymanFPA | |
| It is unclear when the scheme would begin, or how widespread it would be. | |
| Anne Weyman, the head of the Family Planning Association (FPA), said initiatives such as these were "extremely welcome". | |
| But she warned: "It's absolutely essential however, that this initiative is part of a comprehensive and holistic approach to broaden women's access to all 14 methods of contraception and not just the pill. | |
| "Otherwise women will find their contraceptive choices greatly diminished, rather than greatly enhanced." | |
| The contraceptive pill was introduced in this country in 1961, and is used by about 4m women. |