Argentina: Difference between revisions

In Argentina, contraception is legal and widely available. You can purchase condoms and birth control pills without a prescription.<ref>[http://ocsotc.org/wp-content/uploads/worldmap/worldmap.html Global Oral Contraception Availability]</ref> <ref>[http://freethepill.org/where-on-earth/ Free the Pill - Where on Earth? Map]</ref> According to a 2015 study, 61.6% of Argentine women (who are married/in unions and of reproductive age) use any form of contraception, including traditional methods, and 15.3% have unmet family planning needs. The most common forms of contraception are birth control pills (27.7%), condoms (17%), IUDs (6.9%), and female sterilization (3.5%). There are especially low rates of usage for contraceptive injectables (2.6%) and traditional methods, such as rhythm (1.1%) and withdrawal (0.5%). Meanwhile, it was found that practically no women were using contraceptive implants (0.0%) or vaginal barrier methods (0.0%).<ref>[http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/pdf/family/trendsContraceptiveUse2015Report.pdf Trends in Contraceptive Use Worldwide 2015]</ref>

However, some Argentine women face barriers when they try to access contraception. From a historical perspective, the Argentine government formerly opposed the sale or use of contraceptives and, during the military dictatorship (1976-83), even condoms were illegal. In 2003, the government began to freely distribute contraceptives, such as IUDS, for free, but this did not automatically translate into free choice for all. In fact, in 2005, a Human Rights Watch report detailed "how judges, doctors and health workers prevent women from making independent reproductive decisions in violation of women's internationally recognized human rights." The report also analyzed how the impact of spousal pressure and domestic violence limited women's abilities to choose contraception, and discrimination in many hospitals, such as requiring spousal approval for sterilization procedures, further limited women's autonomy.<ref>[https://www.hrw.org/news/2005/06/15/argentina-limits-birth-control-threaten-human-rights Argentina: Limits on Birth Control Threaten Human Rights]</ref>