Morning-after pill to be available without prescription

From CNN

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Women can buy the morning-after pill without a prescription, the government declared Thursday, a major step that nevertheless failed to quell the politically charged debate over access to emergency contraception.


The manufacturer, lawmakers and other advocates said they will press the government to allow minors to purchase the pills over the counter.

The Food and Drug Administration said that women 18 and older -- and men purchasing for their partners -- may buy the Plan B pills without a doctor's note, but only from pharmacies.

Girls 17 and younger still will need a prescription to buy the pills, the FDA told manufacturer Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc., in ruling on an application filed in 2003.

The compromise decision is a partial victory for women's advocacy and medical groups, which say easier access could halve the nation's 3 million annual unplanned pregnancies.

Plan B contains a concentrated dose of the same drug found in many regular birth-control pills. Planned Parenthood estimates 41 other countries already allow women to buy emergency contraception without a prescription.

If a woman takes Plan B within 72 hours of unprotected sex, she can lower the risk of pregnancy by up to 89 percent. Plan B is different from the abortion pill: If a woman already is pregnant, Plan B has no effect.

Last night Giles was on For the Record providing commentary about this decision. I am still not sure what qualifies him to have any commentary on women's medical issues as he is neither a woman nor a gynecologist, yet he is always on camera running that pie-hole. He is such a class A shithead. "We haven't done enough studies about the long term effects of what such a large does of hormones can do to young women" he said. Well I can tell you that a large dose of hormones to KEEP SOMEONE FROM GETTING PREGNANT will be far less complicated than 1. An abortion or 2. Becoming a young un-wed mother. Additionally, for years women have taken a large dose of birth control pills in order to delay their period with no ill effects.

When did Mr. Giles ever care for scientific studies about anything in the past? This pill is pregnancy prevention, which one would think Johnny boy would be happy about since it will reduce the numbers of abortions in the state....but his comments prove that this is really about controlling the decisions that women make.