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Prescription contraception
is free in BC!
We believe prescription contraception is a right, not a luxury. Helping people exercise their sexual and reproductive rights makes British Columbia a better province for everyone.
Free prescription contraception increases equality, improves health outcomes, and saves people and the government money!
On February 28, 2023, the BC Government announced that the 2023 provincial budget would include $119 million over three years to fund free prescription contraception across the province!
We did it! As of April 1, 2023 prescription contraception in BC will be free, including most oral hormone pills, contraceptive injections, copper and hormonal intrauterine devices, subdermal implants and Plan B (also known as the morning-after pill).
If BC's free prescription contraception policy has helped you, please share your story.
The Issue
Prescription contraception in British Columbia is expensive - an intrauterine device (IUD) can cost between $75 and $500, oral contraceptive pills can cost at least $240 per year, and hormone injections can cost as much as $180 per year. These costs make prescription contraception difficult or even impossible to access for the people who need it most.
AccessBC's campaign is based on the idea that universal coverage for prescription contraception is good policy - it helps the most vulnerable people in our communities, it reduces gender inequality, it improves health outcomes for parents and children, and it makes good fiscal sense.
In their 2020 election platform, the BC NDP promised to make all prescription contraception free (see page 14), and free contraception was supported by the BC Liberals and the BC Greens (see page 10).
Fortunately, the policy was included in the 2023 provincial budget, and as of April 1, 2023, prescription contraception in BC will be free!
We are incredibly proud of our work! After 6 hard years of campaigning we have helped make BC the first jurisdiction in Canada to make all prescription contraception free.
Learn more about the reasons for our campaign here.