Europe's Contraception Access: Progress and Challenges in 2023
The European Contraception Policy Atlas has ranked 47 countries, including Israel for the first time, based on access to contraception supplies, counselling, and online information. The report highlights progress and challenges in ensuring widespread access to emergency contraception.
Cristina Puig, Coordinator for the European Consortium for Emergency Contraception, stressed the importance of easy access to emergency contraception. The lowest ranked countries are Poland, Hungary, Armenia, Cyprus, Turkey, and Russia. Poland, however, is taking steps to improve access by planning to make emergency contraception available without a prescription and has appointed a new Minister for Equality.
Over the past year, 14 countries improved their rankings, while 5 experienced setbacks, and 27 remained the same. Looking ahead to 2024, Luxembourg, the UK, France, and Belgium are expected to lead the rankings. Luxembourg's significant improvement, from 60.9 to 94.2 percent in seven years, is attributed to implementing a universal contraception program and making condoms widely available. The European Parliamentary Forum for Sexual & Reproductive Rights (EPF) recommends including contraceptive coverage in national health systems, accessible counselling, and public information on modern contraception methods.
The annual report by the EPF underscores the progress and challenges in contraception access across Europe. While some countries like Poland are taking steps to improve, others continue to lag behind. As we look towards 2024, the top-performing countries serve as examples for others to follow, with Luxembourg's significant strides demonstrating the impact of comprehensive contraception policies.
