title: Pills on the World Wide Web: reducing barriers through technology.
abstract: Oral contraceptive pills are safe, effective, and available without a prescription in most countries. Despite support from the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists to provide oral contraceptives as an over-the-counter medication, US women are still required to have a prescription to obtain them. Use of online applications and the Internet has made most things easier to obtain in our society and this includes contraceptive methods. Several online ventures are now underway to enable US women to obtain oral contraceptives without visiting a medical provider's office. Women's health care professionals should encourage these novel approaches, as they will improve contraceptive access. As US women experiment with innovative health care models, providers will need to lead, follow, or be left behind.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT.
authors.forename: Lori M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Gawron
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT. Electronic address: david.turok@hsc.utah.edu.
authors.forename: David K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Turok
mesh_terms: D003276:Contraceptives, Oral; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D004366:Nonprescription Drugs; D055553:Prescription Drugs; D017216:Telemedicine; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D003276:Contraceptives, Oral; D004366:Nonprescription Drugs; D055553:Prescription Drugs
keywords: contraception; contraceptive access; electronic applications