- The oral contraceptive the women claimed they took was identified as Anulette DC, which was manufactured by Silesia, a subsidiary of the German pharmaceutical company, Grünenthal
- Rojas, one of the women being represented by Corporación Miles, said it was in September 2020 when she realised she was pregnant, adding that she had only been taking Anulette for five months
- Chile's current abortion laws forbid a woman from terminating a pregnancy except for a pregnancy that is the result of rape, if the fetus is incompatible with life outside the womb, or if a woman's life is at risk
PAY ATTENTION: Help us change more lives, join TUKO.co.ke’s Patreon Programme
At least 170 women in Chile claim to have become pregnant after taking faulty birth control pills distributed to them by the government.
The oral contraceptive the women claimed they took was identified as Anulette DC, which was manufactured by Silesia, a subsidiary of the German pharmaceutical company, Grünenthal.
Read also
Jaja Racheal: Mwangi Wa Iria's Daughter Roots for Singlehood as Acceptable Way of Life
Media reports indicated the group of 170 who became pregnant after taking the pills were preparing to file a class-action lawsuit in the South American country's civil courts.
TUKO.co.ke understands that the women were being represented by a Chilean sexual and reproductive rights group known as 'Corporación Miles.'
PAY ATTENTION: Click 'See First' under 'Follow' Tab to see Tuko.co.ke news on your FB feed
Rojas, one of the women being represented by Corporación Miles, said it was in September 2020 when she realised she had a child. Rojas added she had only been taking Anulette for five months.
She later learned, after seeing it posted on Facebook, that her birth control pills were from a batch that had been recalled by Chile's public health authority, the Instituto de Salud Pública de Chile (ISP) the month before.
"I was about to finish the second [box of three prescribed] when I found out about the problem," she said. "At that point, Rojas was already six weeks pregnant."
Read also
Magufuli: Tanzanian Family Struggles to Explain President's Death to Dad Who's Been Unconscious for Months
Another victim, Anulette CD, a 28-day combined oral contraceptive, contains synthetic versions of the hormones estrogen and progesterone, which are produced naturally by the ovaries.
The hormones prevent ovulation, meaning no egg is released by the ovaries, and thicken the lining of the cervix to make it harder for sperm to pass through.
The pill also causes the lining of the uterus to thin so that if an egg is fertilized, it cannot implant and grow.
Pill regimens usually require taking 21 "active" pills that contain the hormones and seven "non-active" or "placebo" pills, to maintain a daily routine, during which time a person bleeds.
The first batch - 139,160 packs of Anulette pills, according to its manufacturer -- was recalled on August 24, 2020, after healthcare workers at a rural healthcare clinic complained that they had identified 6 packets of defective pills.
The news outlet goes on to report that the placebo (a blue pill) had been found where the active pills (a yellow pill) should have been, and vice versa.
Read also
Foreigner Who Flew Drone Into William Ruto's Residence Denies Charges, Released on KSh 200k Bail
PAY ATTENTION: Don't miss trending Kenyan news. Follow TUKO.co.ke on Twitter!
In an online notice published on August 29, the ISP said the makers of Anulette CD, a company called Laboratorios Silesia S.A. (Silesia), had been notified and were withdrawing the defective lot.
The ISP then advised health centers to quarantine any packets they had from the affected batches.
After this, a tweet was sent from the ISP account alerting its followers to the recall. But without a nationwide campaign to more directly inform the public, the recall went largely unnoticed.
By April 2021, some 170 women have gotten in touch, but Dragnic expects this number to increase as rural women and those without access to the internet or television have yet to be reached.
Miles and their partners are now demanding that the government pay financial reparations to the affected women, and provide access to safe and legal abortions for those who wish to terminate their pregnancy.
Read also
DMX: Rapper's 15 Children Fly into New York to Stay with Him After 'not-so-good' Prognosis
Chile's current abortion laws forbid a woman from terminating a pregnancy except for a pregnancy that is the result of rape, if the fetus is incompatible with life outside the womb, or if a woman's life is at risk.
Do you have a groundbreaking story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Contact Tuko.co.ke Instantly.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tcHKqGWcp16gsnCAj3BwbmtdmLWquMSsZKCnpql6pbXSramimqWpsrR5xZqspaypYq%2BqvtOhZJynnqm%2FsLiMqaClpKNifnZ8jJymp5uVnsOmesetpKU%3D