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FDA Deciding Whether To Make Plan B Over-The-Counter
By
Jen Chung
Published Dec 6, 2011
Modified Dec 6, 2011
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By
Jen Chung
Published Dec 6, 2011
Modified Dec 6, 2011
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The Federal Drug Administration has until tomorrow to decide whether to allow Plan B, a morning-after pill, to be sold on shelves and without a prescription.
The Washington Post reports, "The request follows a series of steps in recent years that have gradually made Plan B easier to obtain. If it is approved, the pill would move out from behind pharmacists’ counters, eliminating the requirement that women produce a prescription or prove that they are at least 17 years old to get it without a doctor’s order. Instead, Plan B would be available on store shelves, along with condoms, contraceptive sponges and spermicides." While many are hoping for the FDA to relax restrictions, conservative opponents like the Family Research Council are saying things like, "It’s not a drug that prevents life — it’s a drug that destroys life. If we define life as beginning at fertilization or conception, then this drug can be an abortifacient" and claim that this means men will have more sex with underage girls (ignoring the fact that men can buy the pill legally already).
Here are some more details on morning after pills from Planned Parenthood.
Tagged
emergency contraception
fda
morning after pill
Plan B
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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