Contraception Vending machine offerings at a Pennsylvania university are expanding beyond the world of junk food and into the world of contraception.
Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania now offers the emergency contraceptive Plan B One-Step in a vending machine in the school’s Etter Health Center after a survey found that 85% of students supported doing so. The vending machine is located in a private room in the health center, which is only accessible by students after they have checked in with a front desk and been granted access to the treatment area.
Plan B is an emergency contraception that can be used to prevent pregnancy if taken within 72 hours after unprotected sex, according to the FDA. It is available over the counter without a prescription for women over the age of 17.
The machine is really used as much for privacy as anything else if a student wants to come in.
VP of Student Affairs Roger Serr
While Smith, who is a physician at Wesleyan University, has not heard of any other campus selling emergency contraception out of a vending machine, he does not see it as a problem.
“We know Plan B is safe and effective, so it’s really no different from ibuprofen or some other medication available in a vending machine.”
Known possible side effects of Plan B include nausea, lower abdominal pain, fatigue, headache, and dizziness.
Nearly half of all pregnancies in the U.S. are unintended, and about half of those accidentally impregnated women were using some type of birth control. Something as seemingly small as taking your pill at a different time can cause it to malfunction, and condoms need to be the right size to work. Stay consistent and follow directions to avoid birth control mistakes and be as safe as possible.
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