
Of the 141 countries listed below, 42 countries (29.7%) require a prescription for birth control pills, 47 countries (33.3%) officially require no prescription (though 10 require a health screening), and 52 countries (36.9%) informally allow birth control pills to be distributed without a prescription.
Using 2020 World Bank population estimates, 80.29% of the world’s population lived in a country that did not require a prescription for birth control pills: 55.56% of the population in a country that officially required no prescription and 24.73% that unofficially required no prescription. That leaves about 15.30% of the population in countries where the birth control pill required a prescription. (The percentages won’t add up to 100% because not all countries have available data.)
Country | Rx Required | Available without Rx (health screening required) | Available without Rx (no health screening required) | Informally Available without Rx | 2020 Population (in thousands) | % of 2020 World Population |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Afghanistan | X | 38,928.34 | 0.50% | |||
Albania | X | 2,837.74 | 0.04% | |||
Algeria | X | 43,851.04 | 0.56% | |||
Angola | X | 32,866.27 | 0.42% | |||
Argentina | X | 45,376.76 | 0.58% | |||
Armenia | X | 2,963.23 | 0.04% | |||
Aruba | X | 106.77 | 0.00% | |||
Australia | X | 25,687.04 | 0.33% | |||
Austria | X | 8,917.20 | 1.11% | |||
Azerbaijan | X | 10,093.12 | 0.13% | |||
Bahamas | X | 393.25 | 0.01% | |||
Bahrain | X | 1,701.58 | 0.02% | |||
Bangladesh | X | 164,689.38 | 2.12% | |||
Belarus | X | 9,379.95 | 0.12% | |||
Belgium | X | 11,556.00 | 0.15% | |||
Belize | X | 397.62 | 0.01% | |||
Bhutan | X | 771.61 | 0.01% | |||
Bolivia | X | 11,673.03 | 0.15% | |||
Bosnia & Herzegovina | X | 3,280.82 | 0.04% | |||
Botswana | X | 2,351.63 | 0.03% | |||
Brazil | X | 212,559.41 | 2.74% | |||
Bulgaria | X | 6,934.02 | 0.09% | |||
Burkina Faso | X | 20,903.28 | 0.27% | |||
Cambodia | X | 16,718.97 | 0.22% | |||
Cameroon | X | 26,545.86 | 0.34% | |||
Canada | X | 38,005.24 | 0.49% | |||
Cape Verde | X | 555.99 | 0.01% | |||
Chad | X | 16,425.86 | 0.21% | |||
Chile | X | 19,116.21 | 0.25% | |||
China | X | 1,410,929.36 | 18.12% | |||
Colombia | X | 50,882.88 | 0.60% | |||
Costa Rica | X | 5,094.11 | 0.07% | |||
Croatia | X | 4,047.20 | 0.05% | |||
Cuba | X | 11,326.62 | 0.15% | |||
Czech Republic | X | 10,698.90 | 0.14% | |||
Democratic Congo | X | 89,561.40 | 1.15% | |||
Denmark | X | 5,831.40 | 0.08% | |||
Djibouti | X | 988 | 0.01% | |||
Dominican Republic | X | 10,847.90 | 0.14% | |||
Ecuador | X | 17,643.06 | 0.23% | |||
Egypt | X | 102,334.40 | 1.32% | |||
El Salvador | X | 6,486.20 | 0.08% | |||
Equatorial Guinea | X | 1,402.98 | 0.02% | |||
Estonia | X | 1,331.06 | 0.02% | |||
Ethiopia | X | 114,963.58 | 1.48% | |||
Finland | X | 5,530.72 | 0.07% | |||
France | X | 67,391.58 | 0.87% | |||
Gabon | X | 2,225.73 | 0.03% | |||
Georgia | X | 3,714.00 | 0.05% | |||
Germany | X | 83,240.52 | 1.07% | |||
Ghana | X | 31,072.94 | 0.40% | |||
Greece | X | 10,715.55 | 0.14% | |||
Grenada | X | 112.52 | 0.00% | |||
Guatemala | X | 16,858.33 | 0.22% | |||
Guinea | X | 13,132.79 | 0.17% | |||
Haiti | X | 11,402.53 | 0.15% | |||
Honduras | X | 9,904.61 | 0.13% | |||
Hong Kong | X | 7,481.80 | 0.10% | |||
Hungary | X | 9,749.76 | 0.13% | |||
Iceland | X | 366.43 | 0.00% | |||
India | X | 1,380,004.39 | 17.78% | |||
Indonesia | X | 273,523.62 | 3.52% | |||
Iran | X | 83,992.95 | 1.08% | |||
Ireland | X | 4,994.72 | 0.06% | |||
Israel | X | 9,216.90 | 0.12% | |||
Italy | X | 59,554.02 | 0.77% | |||
Ivory Coast | X | 26,378.28 | 0.34% | |||
Jamaica | X | 2,961.16 | 0.04% | |||
Japan | X | 125,836.02 | 1.62% | |||
Jordan | X | 10,203.14 | 0.13% | |||
Kazakhstan | X | 18,754.44 | 0.24% | |||
Kenya | X | 53,771.30 | 0.69% | |||
Kuwait | X | 4,270.56 | 0.06% | |||
Laos | X | 7,275.56 | 0.09% | |||
Lebanon | X | 6,825.44 | 0.09% | |||
Lesotho | X | 2,142.25 | 0.03% | |||
Liberia | X | 5,057.68 | 0.07% | |||
Lithuania | X | 2,794.70 | 0.04% | |||
North Macedonia | X | 2,072.53 | 0.03% | |||
Madagascar | X | 27,691.02 | 0.36% | |||
Malawi | X | 19,129.96 | 0.25% | |||
Malaysia | X | 32,366.00 | 0.42% | |||
Mali | X | 20,250.83 | 0.26% | |||
Malta | X | 525.28 | 0.01% | |||
Marshall Islands | X | 59.19 | 0.00% | |||
Mexico | X | 128,932.75 | 1.66% | |||
Moldova | X | 2,620.49 | 0.03% | |||
Mongolia | X | 3,278.29 | 0.04% | |||
Morocco | X | 36,910.56 | 0.48% | |||
Mozambique | X | 31,255.44 | 0.40% | |||
Namibia | X | 2,540.92 | 0.03% | |||
Nepal | X | 29,136.81 | 0.38% | |||
Netherlands | X | 17,441.14 | 0.22% | |||
New Zealand | X | 5,084.30 | 0.06% | |||
Nigeria | X | 206,139.59 | 2.66% | |||
Norway | X | 5,379.48 | 0.07% | |||
Pakistan | X | 220,892.33 | 2.85% | |||
Palestine | X | 4,803.27 | 0.06% | |||
Panama | X | 4,314.77 | 0.06% | |||
Paraguay | X | 7,132.53 | 0.09% | |||
Peru | X | 32,971.85 | 0.42% | |||
Philippines | X | 109,581.09 | 1.41% | |||
Poland | X | 37,950.80 | 0.49% | |||
Portugal | X | 10,305.56 | 0.13% | |||
Romania | X | 19,286.12 | 0.25% | |||
Russia | X | 144,104.08 | 1.86% | |||
Rwanda | X | 12,952.21 | 0.17% | |||
Saudi Arabia | X | 34,813.87 | 0.45% | |||
Senegal | X | 16,743.93 | 0.22% | |||
Serbia | X | 6,908.22 | 0.09% | |||
Singapore | X | 5,685.81 | 0.07% | |||
Slovakia | X | 5,458.83 | 0.07% | |||
Slovenia | X | 2,100.13 | 0.03% | |||
South Africa | X | 59,308.69 | 0.76% | |||
South Korea | X | 51,780.58 | 0.67% | |||
Spain | X | 47,351.57 | 0.61% | |||
Sri Lanka | X | 21,919.00 | 0.28% | |||
Sudan | X | 43,849.27 | 0.56% | |||
Eswatini | X | 1,160.16 | 0.01% | |||
Sweden | X | 10,353.44 | 0.13% | |||
Switzerland | X | 8,636.90 | 0.11% | |||
Syria | X | 17,500.66 | 0.22% | |||
Tajikistan | X | 9,537.64 | 0.12% | |||
Tanzania | X | 59,734.21 | 0.77% | |||
Thailand | X | 69,799.98 | 0.90% | |||
Togo | X | 8,278.74 | 0.11% | |||
Trinidad & Tobago | X | 1,399.49 | 0.02% | |||
Tunisia | X | 11,818.62 | 0.15% | |||
Turkey | X | 84,339.07 | 1.09% | |||
Turkmenistan | X | 6,031.19 | 0.08% | |||
Uganda | X | 45,741.00 | 0.59% | |||
Ukraine | X | 44,134.69 | 0.57% | |||
United Arab Emirates | X | 9,890.40 | 0.13% | |||
United Kingdom | X | 67,215.29 | 0.87% | |||
United States | X | 329,484.12 | 4.25% | |||
Uruguay | X | 3,473.73 | 0.04% | |||
Venezuela | X | 28,435.94 | 0.37% | |||
Vietnam | X | 97,338.58 | 1.25% | |||
Yemen | X | 29,825.97 | 0.38% | |||
Zambia | X | 18,383.96 | 0.24% | |||
Zimbabwe | X | 14,862.93 | 0.19% |
Source
OCs OTC Working Group, “Global Oral Contraception Availability,” ocsotc.org (accessed Mar. 10, 2022)
World Bank, “Population, Total,” data.worldbank.org (accessed Mar. 17, 2022)
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