The morning after pill...what's going on?

BPAS has asked Boots and other pharmacies to reduce the price of the morning after pill.

A branded form of the emergency contraception, Levonelle, costs £28.25 in Boots, and its non-branded version is £26.75.
Levonelle costs £13.50 at Tesco.
Superdrug charges £27 for Levonelle and the non branded version is £13.49. 

That's a lot of money.

The morning after pill costs up to five times as much as in other parts of Europe.

This means that some women are unable to afford emergency contraception if they feel they are unable to visit their GP or aren't able to get an appointment. It's also mainly women who purchase the morning after pill, so the pricing is unfair and sexist.
 

Boots' response to it's high price was that it was trying to guard against "incentivising inappropriate use." and getting complaints. So in summary they don't trust women to make choices about their own bodies. And are more concerned about their reputation amongst uneducated anti-contraceptionists than the wellbeing of the female population.

MP Yvette Cooper tweeted Boots that: "This is patronising and pathetic - keeping emergency contraception price too high cos you don't trust women and are scared of critics."

Boots have since responded to criticism by saying  it is looking for cheaper alternatives to the Levonelle brand and has "sincerely apologised for its poor choice of words over the emergency contraception pricing."



Please remember that if you need access to emergency contraception it is often free on the NHS, please read the information below...

ENGLAND
The morning after pill is free on the NHS at GP surgeries, most NHS walk-in centres and urgent care centres. However in some parts of the country the morning after pill is only available to women of a certain age.

SCOTLAND AND WALES
The morning after pill is available free of charge on the NHS from pharmacies, GPs and sexual health clinics.

NORTHERN IRELAND
The morning after pill is free from sexual health clinics, GPs and some pharmacies.



Have a beautiful day x


References:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40676534
http://news.sky.com/story/boots-truly-sorry-after-morning-after-pill-cost-row-10957163
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40689763