Argentina allows morning-after pill to be bought over counter

Women in Argentina will no longer require a prescription to obtain emergency contraception.

The government said making the morning-after pill more easily available removed an "important barrier" for those seeking terminations.

The move was welcomed by feminist groups, who see it as a sign of progress in the Catholic-majority country.

However critics said the move displayed a "failure of pregnancy prevention".

The health ministry said the measure would help avoid unintentional pregnancies by overcoming "difficulties of access to health services, contraception supplies, and education" faced by some.

"This removes an important barrier to access," Valeria Isla, director of sexual and reproductive health at the ministry, told Reuters news agency. "People can have this method of contraception as support before an emergency happens."

Vanessa Gagliardi, leader of the feminist group Juntas y a la Izquierda, said the move would help "de-stigmatise" the morning-after pill in a country where seven out of 10 adolescent pregnancies were unplanned, official data show.

Argentine pro-life group DerguiXlaVida called the measure worrying, accusing the government of "essentially orienting itself towards promoting abortive measures".

It said the move was recognition of the "failure of pregnancy prevention [and] sex education".

It is the latest sign of progress on reproductive rights in Argentina, one of the largest and most influential countries in Latin America, a region where the Catholic Church remains powerful.

Terminations had previously only been allowed in cases of rape or when the mother's health was at risk.

Emergency contraception pills - commonly known as morning-after pills - taken within 120 hours of unprotected sex prevent pregnancy by blocking the fertilisation of the egg, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), although it is more effective within 12 hours.

Emergency contraception - including emergency contraceptive pills and copper-bearing intrauterine devices - can prevent about 95% of pregnancies when taken within five days of intercourse, the WHO says.