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Happy Friday! As if this day weren’t good enough on it’s own, we have awesome Plan B news to make it even better. Federal judge Edward Korman has ordered the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to make the morning-after pill (Plan B) available to women and girls of all ages without a prescription. High fives all around!
This may feel like something you’ve heard about before and that’s probably because this Plan B debate has been going on for a while. Korman first ruled that Plan B should be available over-the-counter for 17-year-old’s and up back in 2009 and urged the FDA to consider making it for all ages. But U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius, overruled the decision. Now it looks like Korman has finally won.
Korman also seemed really unhappy with Kathleen Sebelius’s decision to overrule him. Sebelius had previously made the argument that the morning-after pill shouldn’t be available to girls of all ages because 11-year-old girls might not be able to understand how to use the drug the right way (um, okay?). Korman called that explanation “politically motivated, scientifically unjustified and contrary to agency precedent.” He added, “These emergency contraceptives would be among the safest drugs sold over-the-counter. The number of 11-year-olds using these (morning-after) drugs is likely to be miniscule.”
We’re pretty stoked about this, in case you couldn’t tell. Why shouldn’t women of all ages have access to the morning-after pill over-the-counter? Why should the FDA make it that much harder for young girls to get their hands on Plan B and prevent an unwanted pregnancy? Before this ruling, girls under the age of 17 had to go to a doctor and get a prescription in order to get Plan B. The issue with those extra steps is that it makes things harder for these girls – they may be embarrassed to go to the doctor or maybe they’re not sure where to go without insurance (FYI – Planned Parenthood!). Being able to buy Plan B over-the-counter obviously makes things a lot easier.
I can’t really understand why people wouldn’t want women of all ages to have access to this pill. A while ago, I wrote about how I wasn’t sure if doctors should prescribe it to girls as a precautionary tactic because I didn’t want girls to start relying on Plan B and I’ve heard a similar argument about this. But having it available over-the-counter and having it sitting in your drawer next to your bed are two entirely different things. I think it’s really important for girls to have access to Plan B this way. Ideally, everyone should be having safe sex all the time, but mistakes happen or condoms break and that’s just a part of life. The morning-after pill gives you a second chance to prevent an unplanned pregnancy.
One thing to keep in mind with this? Plan B should never be used as your Plan A. It’s not a form of birth control and that’s important to remember. Despite the fact that you can buy it at your local drugstore, you should still be using a condom and/or taking another form of birth control. Only use Plan B if it’s completely necessary. Otherwise, yay for women everywhere on this one!
Do you think this decision was a good one? Would you ever use Plan B or have you ever used it? Should it be available to girls of all ages? Tell us in the comments.
Is Plan B The Same As An Abortion?
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