WHO publishes guidelines on expanding contraceptive options
On 23 September 2026 the WHO published guidelines on expanding contraceptive options, covering extended pill use, longer implant use and an extra emergency option.
Key points
- The WHO released its guidelines on expanding contraceptive options on 23 September 2026.
- The guidelines support extended use of combined oral contraceptive pills as an alternative to cyclical use.
- They also support longer use of contraceptive implants and add mifepristone as an emergency contraception option.
- The WHO recommends against adding quinestrol-containing contraceptive pills to national programmes.
What was announced
The World Health Organization (WHO) published "WHO guidelines on expanding contraceptive options" on 23 September 2026. The WHO now supports extended use of combined oral contraceptive pills as an alternative to cyclical use, and longer use of contraceptive implants, which it says may reduce the need for replacement procedures, clinic visits and costs.
Mifepristone is recommended as an additional emergency contraception option. The WHO recommends against adding quinestrol-containing contraceptive pills to national contraceptive programmes, and says more research is needed on ormeloxifene before it enters family planning programmes.
What it means
The WHO also announced its first Target Product Profile for male contraceptive methods, which sets out what such products would need to achieve. The WHO frames the new guidelines as widening the safe options available to people choosing a method.
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