Contraception USMEC | Unintended Pregnancy Prevention | CDC Reproductive Health

On behalf of CDC’s Division of Reproductive Health, we are pleased to announce the release of the U.S. Medical Eligibility Criteria for Contraceptive Use, 2010 (US MEC). This is the first time that CDC has published evidence-based guidance on contraceptive safety, and we anticipate that these recommendations, which have been adapted from the World Health Organization, will have an important impact on contraceptive practice in the United States. This guidance contains recommendations for the use of specific contraceptive methods by women and men who have certain characteristics or medical conditions. The US MEC is intended to assist health care professionals when counseling women, men, and couples about contraceptive method choice. This document is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice; persons should seek advice from their health care providers when determining family planning options.

The published recommendations are available on the CDC MMWR website (http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr59e0528a1.htm). The recommendations will be updated on a regular basis to reflect new published evidence. The guidance can also be found on a related CDC web page, which will provide updates and supporting information for clinicians (http://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/UnintendedPregnancy/USMEC.htm).

In 1996, the World Health Organization (WHO) published the first edition of the Medical Eligibility Criteria for Contraceptive Use, which gave evidence-based global guidance on the safety of contraceptive method use for women with specific characteristics and medical conditions. WHO has always intended for its global guidance to be used by policy makers, family planning program managers, and the scientific community as a reference when developing family planning guidance at the country or program level.

CDC went through a formal adaptation process to create the United States Medical Eligibility Criteria for Contraceptive Use (USMEC). This document is intended to assist family planning providers when counseling women, men, and couples about contraceptive method choice. This document is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice; persons should seek advice from their health care providers when determining family planning options.

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Contraception USMEC | Unintended Pregnancy Prevention | CDC Reproductive Health