Thursday, April 23, 2009

Health Over Politics: EC victory for young women


Exciting news! The FDA announced yesterday that Plan B, the emergency contraception better known as the morning-after pill, will now be available over the counter for 17 year olds. The drug had previously only been available to young women with a doctor's prescription. The FDA's decision to ease the age restriction comes after a federal judge ruled last year that inhibiting access to Plan B was based on politics, not science.

We are thrilled to see another Bush-era restriction on women's healthcare fall. Giving young women greater access to emergency contraception helps prevent unintended pregnancies when other contraception methods fail. Plan B is NOT the same as mifepristone/RU-486, the abortion pill. Emergency contraception is taken up to 5 days after unprotected sex and contains a high dose of hormones which can delay or prevent ovulation, or interfere with fertilization or implantation.

To learn more about EC, visit our website.

2 comments:

Tania said...

Woo hoo! Finally some sense back in the FDA! :)

WendyM said...

What's that? The federal government paying attention to women's health and rights again!?!

It's about time!