Saturday, March 28, 2009

Federal Judge Orders "Plan B" Pill to Younger Teens

U.S. District Judge Edward R. Korman in New York ordered the FDA to reconsider its 2006 decision to deny girls younger than 18 access to the morning-after pill Plan B without a prescription.

-- From "FDA Ordered to Rethink Age Restriction for Plan B"By Rob Stein, Washington Post Staff Writer 3/24/09

In his 52-page decision, Korman repeatedly criticized the FDA's handling of the issue, agreeing with allegations in a lawsuit that the [2006] decision was "arbitrary and capricious" and influenced by "political and ideological" considerations imposed by the Bush administration.

Plan B consists of higher doses of a hormone found in many standard birth-control pills. Taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex, it has been shown to be highly effective at preventing pregnancy.

Conservative Congress members and advocacy groups . . . questioned the drug's safety and argued that wider availability could encourage sexual activity and make it easier for men to have sex with underage girls. They also maintain that Plan B can cause the equivalent of an abortion.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.