Amsterdam
The Netherlands has ended its decades-long policy of providing women with free birth control. The change was greeted with alarm by some health advocates, who warned about a possible increase in unwanted pregnancies and abortions. Contraception “used to be easily available to rich and poor,” Annet Jansen of Amsterdam’s Center for Sexual Health told the BBC. “We are on the wrong path.” The law ending free contraception was recently enacted by the center-right government, which cited the high cost of the subsidy. The abortion rate in the Netherlands is 8.7 per 1,000 women, compared with 21.3 per 1,000 women in the U.S.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The Pentagon faces an uncertain future with TrumpTalking Point The president-elect has nominated conservative commentator Pete Hegseth to lead the Defense Department
-
This is what you should know about State Department travel advisories and warningsIn Depth Stay safe on your international adventures
-
'All Tyson-Paul promised was spectacle and, in the end, that's all we got'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
