After making birth control free for underage girls, France is now expanding the program to include women aged 18 to 25.
Summary
- Starting in 2022, birth control will be available to women in France aged 18 to 25 for free, expanding an existing program for minors that seeks to prevent unwanted pregnancies because of the cost of birth control.
- French officials believe that up to 3 million women could benefit from enhanced access to the pill, IUDs, contraceptive patches and jabs.
- The expansion of access was announced back in September, after surveys found that teens were not using contraceptives as much because it was not affordable.
- Leslie Fonquerne, a sociologist focused on gender issues, told AFP that the measure was a start but “in no way resolves the imbalance in the contraceptive burden between women and men.”
- Watch video 00:47 Macron sets agenda for France EU presidencyar/dj (AFP)