http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2006/NEW01436.html


Of couse, there is still a long way to go with this. After all, women who are under 18 are still prohibited from getting "Plan B" without a prescription; this is troubling in light of the fact that the US has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the develped world, and in view of the restriction to information on birth control widely practised in this country.

But it is a great step forward.

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Awesome. Thanks for pointing me to that gg.

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Agreed!

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Hmm....I'm not so sure that selling the morning after pill over the counter is such a good idea, to be honest.

For a start, it should be used as exactly what it says a 'Plan B' and making it readily available, may well mean people relying on it as their main method of contraception, despite the horrible side effects of the drug.

This will do nothing to make a difference to STI rates, which are rising steadily in the UK (not sure about in the US but I imagine it's pretty much the same across the board).

Also, if women are free to get this pill without too much difficulty, it may well be that they will take it incorrectly. Finding out they are pregnant and then taking it, rather than taking it within the 72 two hour time slot after intercourse. While this will not be effective as a method of abortion, might it not cause damage to the child since the pill is a massive dose of hormones in one (well technically speaking two) go?

Personally I think the 'Oops I did it again' attitude to the morning after pill is a VERY dangerous approach to the contraceptive issue and should be seen as a last resort, when your usual method of contraception has failed, or you become aware that you have missed a contraceptive pill. By making it only available on prescription it gives a doctor an opportunity to:

a) Educate the woman/couple on the kind of contraception they should be using to tackle STI prevention etc.

b) Prescribe a regular contraceptive pill, fit a coil or have the patient fitted for a cap.

c) Highlight those patients who are 'repeat users' who may need extra guidance/ assistance when it comes to pregnancy and STI prevention.

Perhaps I'm alone in this, but I was always taught, that if you didn't have a contraceptive handy, you didn't have sex. It's certainly what I plan to teach my son, not, 'well if you don't have any contraception with you, she can always get the morning after pill the next day.'

Maybe that's why I've never had to take the morning after pill and only ever used a pregnancy test when Fussy and I were actively trying to conceive......

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That will never work Loulabelle.

You have brought far to much reason and logic to a situation spurred by 'causes' and divine self-righteousness.

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While I understand your views Lou (and your insults PF), I am ever so grateful it is going to be available here over-the-counter. I am sure it won't be on the shelf with Tylenol but most likely will be handled in a fashion similar to psuedoephedrine is in this country. It would be lovely, and in a perfect world I am sure all people get the sort of healthcare you describe, but not in my country.

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The practice of putting women on pedestals began to die out when it was discovered that they could give orders better from there.~ Betty Grable

If I wanted your opinion, I'd remove the duct tape and ask you for it.~ Me
<~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>
One man's dream is another man's nightmare~~~~> §¤ Lilith ¤§
~>My Scribbles<~
==>Gone Shopping<== ~Just a Quickie~ *~A Celebration Vacation~* ~Surprises~ Sleeping With the Window Open
What Did You Do Today? Self Defense Class ~Short Sweet Snippets~ § Summer Spin § Story Challenge Submission Pajamas

Looking for the diametric limits to find a center of balance was not intended as an insult.

I think the point of contention for me is when any two opinions assume the crusading banner of "what's right for me is right for you", regardless of the subject or participants. I am more interested in the reasoning than the inspiration. And I find it more difficult to accept reasoning inspired by inspiration than inspiration inspired by reasoning. Is it just a chicken/egg prospective perhaps?

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Loullabelle,
Among the many problems with making "Plan B" available only by perscription are:
a) The "education" that is provided by *any* organization that accepts any form of fedral funding is pretty much limited by law to spouting only the accepted viewpoint of the current government. In the current atmosphere, this pretty much boils down to only repeating the propaganda of the right-wing religions that the Republican party has caved in to.

b) The number of religious theocrats masquerading as women's health-care providers, and the power they are gaining in the role of "health care" is frightening (at least to me, and I am not alone in this particular viewpoint).

Yes, there are several other problems, but these two are the ones that IMO, pose the most danger to women's lives at the present time.

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