Developed by Gregory Pincus at G. D. Searle & Company, it was first approved on June 10, 1957, by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treatment of menstrual disorders.

[1] The FDA approved an additional indication for use as a contraceptive on June 23, 1960, though it only became legally prescribable nationwide and regardless of the woman's marital status after Eisenstadt v. Baird in 1972.

Originally it was not legal to use contraception so it was marketed for menstrual relief with the side effect of inability to conceive.

[12] The first published case report of a blood clot and pulmonary embolism in a woman using Enavid (Enovid 10 mg in the U.S.) at a dose of 20 mg/day did not appear until November 1961, four years after its approval, by which time it had been used by over one million women.

[17] Their work led to mandating the inclusion of patient package inserts with oral contraceptives to explain their possible side effects and risks to help facilitate informed consent.