MySpace

Soporific! Recalcitrant bloviation

blogs.myspace.com/bobbyrocket
MySpace.com | rss | sign in
Clear Motives



Last Updated: 5/27/2009

Send Message
Instant Message
Email to a Friend
Subscribe

Gender: Female
Age: 28
Sign: Scorpio

City: WASHINGTON
State: Washington DC
Thursday, August 24, 2006 

Current mood:  surprised
Emergency Contraception Win!

Dear Jennifer,

Plan B prevails! Today, after years of foot-dragging, the FDA put politics aside and granted over-the-counter status to emergency contraception for women 18 and older.

This victory is the result of years of pressure from the scientific and medical communities and pro-choice activists, including thousands of Planned Parenthood supporters like YOU. Thank you!

Please take a moment to thank Sens. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Patty Murray (D-WA), for their indispensable leadership on this issue.

Then, celebrate this victory by heading down to your local Planned Parenthood health center and picking up a package of emergency contraception to back up your birth control!

This is a huge, long-awaited success but there is still more work to be done. In its announcement, the FDA stated it will not approve over-the-counter sales of Plan B to women under 18. It continues to deny teens the benefits of greater access to emergency contraception.

Our country has a serious teen pregnancy problem. As we all know, anything that makes it harder for teens to prevent unintended pregnancy is bad medicine and bad policy.

What's more, this age restriction means pharmacies will likely keep this safe, effective backup method of birth control behind the counter, forcing all women to ask a pharmacist's permission to access it.

We will continue to work diligently to secure over-the-counter access of emergency contraception for ALL women of ALL ages without them needing permission from a pharmacist.

Thank you for your help in getting us this far!

Sincerely,




Cecile Richards
President
Planned Parenthood Action Fund

P.S. Here's how we got to where we are today (it's been a long road to victory!):

December 16, 2003: A joint hearing of the FDA Nonprescription Drugs and Reproductive Health Drugs Advisory Committees votes 23 to four to recommend that the FDA make Plan B emergency contraception available over the counter.

May 6, 2004: The FDA notifies Barr Laboratories, which manufactures Plan B, that its application for over-the-counter status is denied, citing concerns about adolescent use.

January 21, 2005: In a highly unusual move, the FDA misses its deadline to rule on the revised application. The agency indicates that review of the medication is expected to be completed in the near future but does not specify a date.

July 15, 2005: Sens. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Patty Murray (D-WA) obtain agreement from the FDA to rule on Plan B status by September 1, 2005.

August 26, 2005: The FDA announces yet another delay on issuing a decision on the application to make Plan B available over the counter.

July 31, 2006: The FDA announces it will open discussions with Barr Laboratories to make Plan B available over the counter for women 18 and over. The FDA states it will not approve Plan B for over-the-counter sale to young women under 18.

August 24, 2006: The FDA approves over-the-counter sale of Plan B to women 18 and over.

9:10 PM
 
Print
Previous Post: Jubilation! | Back to Blog List | Next Post: No longer a tremendous brunette