The time between sexual intercourse and taking the tablet is key to its effectiveness – usually it must be taken within 72 hours, i.e. three days. In Europe, it is available without prescription in eleven countries, including Albania, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Holland, Portugal and Sweden (outside theEU, you can find it in Norway, Morocco, Israel and South Africa).
In the UK, the pill has been sold without prescription to women over the age of 16 since 2001, and costs 28 euros (£25). The price of the morning after pill is also extortionate in Switzerland (24 euros, £21). However in France, where the ‘post-coital pill' (as the docs brand it) has been sold since 1999 without a GP prescription, it costs less than ten euros (£8. 90). In Poland, the price is midway, at 50 - 80 zlotys (10-17 euros, £8 - 15), depending on the kind.