Nextstellis is a new birth control pill that uses the hormones estetrol and drospirenone. Drospirenone is the same progestin that is used in some other combination birth control pills, such as Yasmin, and the progestin-only pill, Slynd . What makes Nextstellis different is that it’s the only birth control pill to use estetrol, an estrogen that is found naturally in the body, and it’s manufactured from a plant source.

Key Facts about Nextstellis:

• You use Nextstellis the same way as other combination birth control pills , you take one pill every day. When taken every day, Nextstellis is more than 98% effective at preventing pregnancy.

• Nextstellis has 24 active pills and four placebo or inactive pills.

• Benefits and side effects of Nextstellis are similar to other combination pills. Nextstellis has benefits like lighter, more predictable periods and less acne. Other common side effects with combination pills, like headache, changes in mood, breast tenderness, weight gain, and decreased sex drive, may be less likely when using Nextstellis.

• If you have certain medical conditions, or are at an increased risk of blood clots, for example if you smoke cigarettes and are over 35 years old, you shouldn’t use birth control methods with estrogen including Nextstellis.

• Unfortunately, Nextstellis may be less effective if you have a BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2* and the higher your BMI the less effective it may be.

You’ll need a prescription from a health care provider to start using Nextstellis. Many insurance plans nationwide now cover Nextstellis with no out-of-pocket cost. If you don’t have coverage, you may qualify to pay as little as $25 for each of up to 12 one-month prescription fills OR up to 4 three-month prescription fills with coupons available at nextstellis.com . Without insurance or coupons, Nextstellis can cost an average of $195 out of pocket per month.

*We acknowledge that BMI is a flawed measurement for many reasons and is not an indicator of general overall health.