Finally, FDA Ends Political Posturing, Allows Over-the-Counter Access to "Morning-After" Pill
Pro-choice group’s work to ensure access to this pregnancy prevention method pays off
Madison, WI – Kelda Helen Roys, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin, applauded the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) long overdue decision to grant over-the-counter status to the emergency contraceptive Plan B®, also known as the "morning-after" pill.
"Finally, the FDA put sound science before politics and made this safe, effective birth-control option more accessible to women," said Roys. "The American public and medical experts overwhelmingly support increased access to emergency birth control as a way to prevent unintended pregnancy and reduce the need for abortion. "
NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin has been instrumental in educating the public about emergency contraception and improving access to it through several innovative programs. As the political arm of the pro-choice movement, NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin’s activists and members statewide sent thousands of letters demanding that the FDA stop putting politics before women’s health needs. The organization also helped facilitate Wisconsin’s lawsuit against the FDA for refusing to follow its own regulatory process.
The Bush Administration’s interference in the FDA’s process is part of a larger effort by right-wing extremists to politicize science and limit access to birth control. Congressman Mark Green, Republican candidate for Governor, has voted to allow pharmacists to withhold birth control from women, to gut publicly funded family planning services, and to allow hospitals to refuse to provide rape victims with access to the morning-after pill. Last year, the state assembly approved a bill to ban certain forms of birth control from being provided by University Health Services.
"Wisconsinites are tired of divisive attacks on women’s reproductive rights and privacy," Roys continued. "Finally, under great pressure from scientists and activists nationwide, the FDA stood up to the Bush administration and its far-right base to help women prevent unintended pregnancy by guaranteeing greater access to the ‘morning-after’ pill.”
The age restriction means the medication will not reach everyone who needs it, even though evidence of Plan B’s safety is overwhelming. Experts like the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend the medication be available for women of all ages. The effect of the Bush Administration’s extreme anti-choice policies is that many teens will have to face an unintended pregnancy that could have been prevented with timely access to EC.
NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin will continue to work to ensure that Plan B is affordable and accessible for all women in the state.
Emergency contraception is a high dose of ordinary birth control pills that, if taken within 72-120 hours after sex, is highly effective at preventing pregnancy. It has no effect on an existing pregnancy.
Contact: Kelda Helen Roys, 608-213-4502
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