Earlier last week, NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina announced that Harris Teeter pharmacies in North Carolina are officially stocking the emergency contraceptive Plan B®!  We have many people to thank for this enormous victory: our activists for the constant public pressure, the News & Observer for drawing [link to:  more attention to the situation, and the It’s important that we thank Harris Teeter for stocking Plan B®, but we must also remember that this is just the first step.  Harris Teeter needs to make its policy public so that women know they can obtain the medication at any Harris Teeter store.  Click here to thank Harris Teeter for fixing the immediate problem and ask them to share their policy with their customers.

Sadly, Harris Teeter is not the only pharmacy chain with Plan B® stocking issues.  According to a recent study by NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina, 40 percent of pharmacies in North Carolina do not carry emergency contraception (EC).  Among those pharmacies that did not currently stock EC, more than 30 percent refused to even order it upon a customer’s request. 

Thankfully, we now have a great example of what a pharmacy can do in order to ensure that women can access their prescriptions without hassle or delay.  We must continue to urge them to make their policy public and call on North Carolina’s other pharmacy chains to follow Harris Teeter’s example.

Availability of emergency contraception is critical to helping prevent unintended pregnancy and reduce the need for abortion.  NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina is committed to working towards commonsense policies that will improve access to birth control for all of the women of North Carolina.