FDA Considers Allowing Over-the-Counter Sale of Birth Control Pill

A panel of FDA advisors unanimously recommended allowing women to obtain a birth control pill without a prescription, specifically HRA Pharma's Opill, which is generically called norgestrel. If approved, Opill would be the first over-the-counter birth control pill in the U.S. since oral contraceptives were approved more than 60 years ago. However, FDA scientists raised concerns about whether the general public, particularly adolescents and people with lower literacy levels, will understand norgestrel's drug label and use the medication the right way.