As of January 1, women in Oregon don’t need to visit their doctor to get a prescription for birth control. According to Dr. Alison Edelman of OHSU just having birth control availability via a pharmacist doesn’t suggest that preventative health care isn’t essential. Dr. Alison said that the law is not saying such a thing.

She is a supporter of new law, which ‘is actually going to allow increased access to women for something that’s extremely safe and a highly needed by women’.

Gov. Kate Brown signed into law a bill in July, which will permit women to buy birth control without a prescription from doctor, and the expanded access become effective on January 1.

Oregon has become the nation’s first state to implement this law, and California is looking forward to do the same. US senators in both Colorado and Washington have introduced versions of Oregon’s latest law.

Women above 18 will be allowed to go to an Oregon pharmacy, fill a special health questionnaire and if the pharmacist found everything good, he will give them a prescription. Women below 18 years will have to bring along a prescription from doctor and then only they will be able to get pharmacist-provided birth control, though that regulation will go away in some years under the law.

Furthermore, from January 1 onwards, Oregon women can have a year-long supply of birth control pills for once as under a new law, insurance companies are needed to cover a full year.