 So it wasn't included in the study, but Cato says it's unlikely to have made a big difference considering that those options are still really expensive and out of reach for low income people. Take Opal, which is the FDA's approved birth control pill that you can get over the counter. There's no need for a prescription. It runs about twenty dollars a month. But if you have insurance, even Medicaid, you can get prescription birth control covered for free. So it's not likely to have a big impact.