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The morning after: Prescription-free access to emergency contraceptive pills

Author

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  • Pfeifer, Gregor
  • Stockburger, Mirjam

Abstract

We analyze the introduction of prescription-free access to morning-after pills—emergency contraceptives that aim to prevent unintended pregnancy and subsequent abortion after unprotected sexual intercourse. Exploiting a staggered difference-in-differences setting for Europe combined with randomization inference, we find sharp increases in sales and manufacturers’ revenues of more than 90%. However, whilst not reducing abortions significantly, the policy triggers an unexpected increase in fertility of 4%, particularly among women aged 25–34. We elaborate on mechanisms by looking at within-country evidence from several EU countries, which suggests that fertility is driven by decreasing use of birth control pills in response to easier access to morning-after pills.

Suggested Citation

  • Pfeifer, Gregor & Stockburger, Mirjam, 2023. "The morning after: Prescription-free access to emergency contraceptive pills," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jhecon:v:91:y:2023:i:c:s0167629623000528
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2023.102775
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Emergency contraception; Morning-after pill; Unintended side effects; Fertility; Difference-in-differences;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • C46 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods: Special Topics - - - Specific Distributions
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth

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