About two years after the US Food and Drug Administration approved the first over-the-counter birth control pill in the United States, a new study suggests that many people who may not have had access to contraception before are now using the over-the-counter option.

More than a quarter – 26.2% – of people now using over-the-counter oral contraceptives were using no modern method of birth control before, according to the study published Monday in the medical journal JAMA Network Open .

People relying on the over-the-counter birth control pill, which requires no prescription, are more likely to be uninsured, adolescents and living in rural areas, the study found.

Not having health insurance and residing in rural areas are two of the main barriers for people trying to access any health

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