Pill after More and more women use the emergency contraception since the recipe freedom

Demand for pill then increased significantly
Since the prescription requirement for the "morning after pill" was lifted in March, the demand for such preparations has skyrocketed. German pharmacists report a sales increase of up to 60 percent. The recipe freedom was long disputed.

Sales increased by almost 60 percent
After the prescription requirement was lifted in mid-March, there was a veritable rush to the pill thereafter. "The sales figures of these products have increased significantly. There has been a bit. Now it is stable at a higher level, "said the president of the ABDA - Federal Association of German Pharmacist Associations, Friedemann Schmidt, to the German Press Agency. Since the release women can buy the emergency contraceptive after unprotected intercourse without prescription and advice from a doctor immediately in the pharmacy. According to the ABDA, sales of supplements increased by 58 percent from February to May. While there were still over 38,000 packs in February, around 60,000 boxes were delivered in May. In June, around 59,000 packs were sold.

Release of the pill after that was long disputed
As Schmidt said, the legislator's intention to make the contraceptive as a safe contraceptive in an emergency more accessible to women has "led to greater demand, as foreseen," he said. "There were no, no security problems whatsoever. "This also applies to younger women and girls. According to him, it has been confirmed that they are "very safe medicines". Before prescription freedom was decided, health experts had warned of potential risks by releasing the pill afterwards. For example, gynecologists had pointed out that the necessary detailed advice, which is imposed on the pharmacists, in the customer interview was not to afford. According to the medical profession, the preparations have a massive impact on the hormone balance of the female users. In addition, various side effects such as headache, dizziness, pelvic pain, bleeding, nausea and vomiting have been reported. Although the drug is similar to the conventional "anti-baby pill", however, the concentrations of the active ingredients are many times higher.

Federal Minister of Health changed course
As the dpa writes, about 20 percent of the preparations were issued with prescriptions on the statutory health insurance (SHI) and 80 percent with prescriptions, which were settled either over the private PKV or at own expense before release. Since the release, 81 percent of women go to the pharmacy and pay for the pill itself, six percent expect a GKV prescription and 13 percent on private prescriptions. Schmidt said: "We believe that we have always lived up to the responsibility, which then passed to the pharmacists with the prescription freedom of the pill." The gynecologists were always included in the preparation of the guidelines for consultation by pharmacists. "We can not be reproached for having taken anything in a row here." Federal Health Minister Hermann Gröhe (CDU) had, after much resistance, changed course on this issue at the end of last year, after the European Medicines Committee had recommended the prescription of the pill afterwards , (Ad)