The OTC pill project supports the #liberatethepill movement to remove the prescription requirement for dispensing combined hormonal birth control pills, making them more accessible to all who use them.

The availability of OTC oral contraception will give millions of women convenient access to contraception without the hassles of health insurance, prescriptions or a doctor’s visit.

In 2012 the first emergency contraceptive (EC), called Plan B, was approved for OTC sale in the USA. In a landmark 2023 decision the US-FDA approved OTC sale of a progesterone only pill (the Opill*).

 The next logical step for the FDA is OTC approval of a combined hormonal contraceptive pill (CHC). CHCs are the most popular birth control pills used today. More than 9 million women take a CHC every day in the USA.

Our OTC Pill project promotes safe use of all oral contraceptives starting with building awareness about who should not use these products to avoid potentially dangerous side effects.

Our OTC Pill Project supports affordable and equitable access to ECs, Opill, and CHCs. We would like to see them on retail shelves next to condoms and in many places where they can’t be found today. ECs are mostly only available in large pharmacy chain stores, and consequently difficult to find in many smaller towns and low-income neighborhoods. This market failure needs a solution. Our priority is to improve access to contraceptives in underserved communities.  

The OTC Pill Project is currently facilitating donations for two purposes:

1 - Providing free EC product for public community clinics and college-campus vending machines.

2 - Supporting activities required by FDA to achieve over-the-counter (OTC) approval for CHCs.

Donors may specify whether their donation should be used for one or both of these purposes. Click here to make a donation for the OTC Pill Project.

For more information, contact us at otcpillproject@oasissahel.org

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• Opill is a progesterone-only pill – a “one hormone” pill.

• Opill was previously called the minipill, best suited for breastfeeding mothers and people who have known sensitivity to estrogen.

• CHC pills have 2 hormones-estrogen and progesterone in each of the active pills