Can women afford emergency contraceptive pills?

Around the world, many women buy contraceptives and other health products from the private commercial sector, directly from pharmacies and drug vendors. The commercial sector is potentially an important contributor to the FP2020 goals of reaching 120 million new contraceptive users.  Yet relatively little is known about how the private commercial sector is meeting women’s needs for contraceptive services.  What is the price of unsubsidized (not socially marketed) private sector products? Are these products affordable, and are there factors that influence the price charged to women? Funded by the RHSC Innovation Fund through the Market Development Approaches working group, the International Consortium for Emergency Contraception fielded an online survey on the price of emergency contraceptive pills (EC or ECPs) in pharmacies. We were able to gather data from over 70 countries. Analysis of these data showed that there are substantial differences in the price of EC by country and by region. The influence of public sector availability, social marketing of an EC product, and local manufacturing was also examined.  Presenters: Denise Harrison, USAID: An introduction to the Total Market Approach that encompasses public sector, NGO, social marketing and commercial/for-profit organization. Elizabeth Westley, ICEC: Results of a global study on the price of EC in the private commercial sector. Sarah Rich, ICEC: Case studies of the total market for emergency contraceptive pills in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Nigeria.