The Reproductive Health Technologies Project is sponsoring a petition to remove the current restrictions on emergency contraception and allow it to be placed on pharmacy shelves next to the condoms.
In December of 2011, the FDA was prepared to make emergency contraception accessible to consumers without restriction, based on more than a decade of medical research and policy debates. Instead, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius overruled the FDA, putting politics ahead of women’s health. Her decision created unnecessary confusion for women and couples at a moment when clarity and timing matter most.
Despite Secretary Sebelius’ December 2011 decision, no evidence suggests that making emergency contraception accessible leads to risky behavior among teens. What it does do is give teens a second chance to prevent and unintended pregnancy so they can stay in school…
Emergency contraception is a safe, effective back-up method of birth control that can prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex or contraceptive failure. A woman is healthiest when she can decide the timing and spacing of her pregnancies. Let’s ensure that any woman who needs EC can get it safely and quickly.
Both the American College of Ob-Gyn and the American Academy of Pediatrics have released opinions supporting over the counter EC Access.
And as I’ve written before, emergency contraception is safer than Tylenol.
‘nuf said. Go sign the petition. (I did)
Your juxtaposition related to overdoses is really compelling. Be prepared for the Republican Party platform argument that Tylenol is not responsible for murder, maybe just suicide…
I was shocked to learn recently that the official party platform calls for abortions to be abolished by constiutional amendment based on the fact that the fetus has rights under the 14th amendment at the time of conception. This logic would mean women using IUDs would be murderers. Never mind the availability of emergency contraception!
I am a person who has strong feelings about the my family’s ability to manage pregnancy viability, but I won’t share my view here…what I can say is that I don’t think that the government has the right to determine someone else’s morals provided if someone is seeking intervention, it determined by the FDA to be is safe and effective. To me, avaiability is part of being effective.
Just sayin’.
Schrugglin’
We agree on all but one point – I’m afraid you have a common misunderstanding as to how the IUD works.
The Mirena, like oral contraceptives, prevents ovulation. Both IUD’s have anti-sperm activity and prevent fertilization. They do not cause an abortion unless they are inserted during an already implanted pregnancy. (Which would not be intentional – and is why we insert them during the menses) .
XOXXO
Peggy