Is this morning after pill ad 'disgusting'?

A controversial new advertising campaign in Britain, which aims to give the morning after pill free to women as a Christmas gift in December, has drawn the ire of many who claim it is “disgusting”.

In 2010 there were 189,574 abortions performed in the United Kingdom. Of those, 3,718 were to girls under 16, 12,742 to those aged 16 and 17, and 21,809 were to women aged 18 and 19.

The British Pregnancy Advisory Service, a non-Government charity, has kept a watch on the increasing stats (the numbers are up eight per cent from 2000) and wanted to do something about it.

Enter the latest campaign to offer the morning after pill for free in December.

The website introduces the service:

“He’s hot, he lights you up inside, you can’t switch it off and before you know it, the sparks are flying….

The thing is, we see more women with an unplanned pregnancy in January than any other time of the year. We don’t want you to be one of them. Getting hold of the ‘Morning After Pill’ over Christmas can be difficult so it’s useful to have it before you need it.”

The service has been experiencing high demand in the United Kingdom.

With a poster campaign (above) which asks ‘Getting turned on this Christmas?’ above fairy-light renditions of the word ‘sex’ and a website address ‘Santa Comes’ the campaign has also been accused of being ‘filthy’ and sending the wrong message about safe sex and prevention.

So the question is, does offering something of a safeguard make women safer, or does it give them a false sense of security?

According to The Telegraph:

“Josephine Quintavalle, of the ProLife Alliance, described the campaign as “incredibly vulgar”.

She said: “It trivialises women’s sexuality. This scheme isn’t about making women responsible; it will lead to them exposing themselves to more risks.”

…

[British Pregnancy Advisory Service] BPAS said the service was vital at a time when many surgeries and pharmacies would be closed and because chemists’ shops charged up to £25 for the emergency contraceptive, too expensive for some women.

Some high street pharmacies already offer a similar service for a fee but the BPAS service is understood to be the first not to charge.

Chemists’ have been allowed to sell the morning after pill without a prescription to over-16s since 2001.

Tracey Forsyth, the [BPAS] charity’s lead contraception nurse, said: “The morning after pill can be taken up to 72 hours after unprotected sex, but the sooner it is taken the better and having it at home means you are much more likely to take it as soon as you need it.

The service itself is pretty straight forward. Women who would like a pack, which also includes condoms and supporting information, just register on the website and wait for the pack to be sent to them.

So, what do you think? Do you use the morning after pill?