A California law passed in 2013 has determined that residents can now acquire birth control directly from a pharmacist without a prescription.
The law was supposed to go into effect April 8, but has hit some delay, with many pharmacies slow to accept the change in policy.
“It sucks, but it doesn’t look like a permanent thing,” said first-year anthropology major April Beckett. “It just seems like pharmacists aren’t really ready to implement the rule because they aren’t yet certified. Just one step at a time I guess.”
The law does not require pharmacists to provide this service, but now gives them the option.
In order to acquire birth control, a woman must see a pharmacist, fill out a health questionnaire and get her blood pressure taken.
“I think it’s a great thing,” said first-year pre-nursing major Jessica Castro. “Every woman should have a nonprescription option for birth control and now that they have that, it’s great. It’s their right.”
Amelia Storm can be reached at [email protected] or @amelia__storm on Twitter