The World Health Organization has recommended mifepristone as a new emergency contraceptive and backed longer use of the pill and implants. It has also set out what future contraceptives for men should achieve.
“Choice is a gender equality issue. Contraception isn’t one-size-fits-all.”
Pascale Allotey directs the World Health Organization’s Department of Sexual, Reproductive, Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health and Ageing. Her words accompanied new WHO guidelines on expanding contraceptive options, published on 23 September 2026. They add mifepristone as an option for emergency contraception and back longer use of the combined pill and contraceptive implants. WHO has also set out, for the first time, what future contraceptives for men should achieve.
WHO estimates that 164 million women who want to delay or avoid pregnancy are not using contraception. That figure, from 2021, is the latest available in its family planning fact sheet. The same data show 874 million women using modern methods.
Mifepristone joins the emergency options
Under the new guidance, mifepristone should be taken as soon as possible and within five days of unprotected sex. At doses of 10 to 50 mg, it is likely to be as safe and effective as other emergency methods, WHO says.
The guidelines are designed for health ministries and programme managers. They will decide whether to add mifepristone and the other options to national programmes and clinical guidance. Access will therefore depend on each country’s decision.
Fewer breaks, fewer clinic visits
Combined oral contraceptive pills can now be taken for up to six months without a break, WHO says. They can also be taken continuously for up to one year, as alternatives to the usual monthly cycle.
Contraceptive implants are a small rod placed under the skin of the arm. WHO supports using them for up to five years, which it says could cut replacement procedures, clinic visits and costs. Our analysis of the five-year implant looks at what the change means for women and clinicians. Allotey said: “Real choice means the confidence and control to choose a method, change it, or stop it.”
WHO held back on two other methods because the evidence was too weak. It called for more research on ormeloxifene, citing limited safety evidence. It advised against adding pills containing quinestrol to national programmes, citing limited evidence and reports of serious adverse events.
Male methods within a decade
Men currently have few methods under their control, mainly condoms, withdrawal and vasectomy. Around 30% of couples rely on a male method, according to WHO.
WHO’s first target product profile for male contraceptives sets out what future methods should achieve on safety, effectiveness, acceptability and affordability. WHO says new reversible male contraceptives may reach the market within five to ten years.
WHO cites its own research in the journal Contraception, covering couples in four low- and middle-income countries. More than 75% of couples surveyed said they would use a new male contraceptive. More than 85% of women said they would trust their partner to take responsibility for contraception. Allotey said: “Men and women both need a range of options that reflect what science and innovation can now offer.”
Emergency contraception: what WHO says every woman can expect
WHO published its emergency contraception fact sheet in 2021, before the mifepristone decision. It sets out rights that apply in every country. “All women and girls at risk of an unintended pregnancy have a right to access emergency contraception,” it says. It adds that there are no age limits for using emergency contraception.
The fact sheet lists pills containing ulipristal acetate or levonorgestrel, combined oral contraceptive pills and the copper intrauterine device (IUD). WHO says these methods should be routinely included within all national family planning programmes.
WHO says every emergency method works best the sooner it is used, and recommends emergency pills within 120 hours of unprotected sex. A copper IUD fitted within five days is more than 99% effective, which WHO calls the most effective form of emergency contraception available.
This article is for information only and does not replace advice from a qualified health professional.
Header image: National Cancer Institute on Unsplash