This article was originally published on Aug. 26, 2022.
On Mad Men, the TV drama set in 1960s New York City, secretary Peggy Olson visited a gynecologist and asked to start oral contraceptives. The physician noted she wasn’t married and said he’d fill the prescription, although he worried the freedom might turn her into a “strumpet.”
“I’ll warn you now, I’ll take you off this medicine if you abuse it,” the physician says.
Times have changed since Peggy paid $11 for her monthly prescription ($111 in today’s money) and promised the doctor she wouldn’t run around to get her “money’s worth.” Contraception options now include a variety of inexpensive and long-term options. Here are seven methods scientists say are the most effective.
