Surprisingly progressive decision by the Health Ministry.
After the decision by the Ministry of Health on full liberalization of “morning after pills” caused reactions by some conservative associations, Health Minister Dario Nakić explained on Friday that such pills were not abortion pills and that the pills were previously also available to everyone. He added that the only change was the fact that women could now buy them without filling in a questionnaire in pharmacies, reports Jutarnji List on June 10, 2016.
These pills have been available without a prescription in pharmacies for more than a year, and anyone could purchase them. They are not abortion pills, but they only prevent unwanted pregnancies by delaying ovulation, said Minister Nakić when asked about the criticism from the Vigilare conservative organization, which sent him a letter demanding he either change the decision or resign.
“The only change is that the person who is buying such pills no longer has to fill in a questionnaire, which was a bit too intimate and could have put the customer in an awkward situation. The data written in the questionnaire was not being checked anyway”, said Nakić to reporters.
He added that the Ministry decided to allow their purchase in order to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies, especially among young people, and wanted to prevent buyers from being exposed to unpleasant or humiliating situations.
Nakić added that he personally was not in favour of abortion, but he was also not in favour of unwanted pregnancies, especially among minors, and said that this move by the Ministry had nothing to do with population policy or anything similar. “We just wanted to protect the dignity of persons who are purchasing something that is already available. There are other ways to promote population policies”, he said.
