WOULD MAKING BIRTH-CONTROL PILLS AVAILABLE OVER THE COUNTER REDUCE ABORTIONS? Yes, but probably not a lot.
I’m torn on this. On the one hand, I’d make most prescription drugs OTC — the ones I’d regulate hardest would be antibiotics, since misuse is dangerous not just to the taker, but potentially to millions of others if you breed a resistant strain. On the other hand, birth control pills are more dangerous than generally recognized — they most likely caused the Insta-Wife’s heart attack, and I hear of similar stories pretty regularly. But, on the gripping hand, doctors tend to pass them out pretty casually anyway, so what’s really gained by requiring a prescription?