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

We analyze the introduction of prescription-free access to morning-after pills-emergency con-traceptives 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.

Automated summary

This study analyzes the impact of prescription-free access to morning-after pills on unintended pregnancy and abortion rates. The results show a significant increase in sales and manufacturers' revenues by more than 90%. However, the policy does not significantly reduce abortion rates but unexpectedly increases fertility rates by 4%, particularly among women aged 25-34. The study further investigates the mechanism behind this increase by examining within-country evidence from several EU countries, which suggests a decrease in the use of birth control pills due to easier access to morning-after pills.