It’s Time for Albany to Act on the Unintended Pregnancy Prevention Act
For Immediate Release
May 13, 2005
Contact:
Destiny Lopez - 917-586-3786
It’s Time for Albany to Act on the Unintended Pregnancy Prevention Act:
News Reports About FDA Advisor Cast Further Doubt on D.C. Approval of Emergency Contraception
Statement by Destiny Lopez, Director, Emergency Contraception Access Campaign, NARAL Pro-Choice New York
Alarming reports in the national press reveal that the Food and Drug Administration has placed the fate of millions of American women squarely in the hands of a doctor outside of the mainstream of medicine whose personal actions illustrate a complete lack of respect for the health and safety of women. The Bush FDA called on Dr. David Hager, a member of its Reproductive Health Advisory Committee, to author an unprecedented minority opinion opposing FDA approval of the emergency contraceptive, Plan B, for over-the-counter use. Dr. Hager has publicly boasted that his opinion was shared with the FDA Commissioner, further underscoring the FDA’s ongoing efforts to let politics trump science in the push to make Plan B available directly to American women without a prescription.
The FDA’s continued delay in approving over-the-counter access to emergency contraception, coupled with the shocking revelation of Dr. Hager’s report, compel the New York State Senate to act to immediately give New York women access to emergency contraception.
By passing S.3661 (Spano), the Senate will ensure the medicine and science prevail over a religious political agenda and give women in New York a much needed second chance to prevent unintended pregnancy. New York’s women have waited far too long for easier access to this common ground solution to prevent unintended pregnancy and reduce the need for abortion.
In an article in Thursday’s Washington Post, Hager claims that he was, "asked to write a minority opinion that was sent to the commissioner of the FDA. For only the second time in five decades, the FDA did not abide by its advisory committee opinion, and the measure was rejected." Hager goes on to say, according to the Post, "God took that information, and he used it through this minority report to influence the decision. Once again, what Satan meant for evil, God turned into good." The FDA denies that Hager was asked to submit a minority opinion, but Hager told at least two journalists that the request came from an FDA staff member. In December 2003, the FDA’s own expert advisory committees overwhelmingly voted to approve the emergency contraceptive Plan B for over-the-counter use. Shortly after Dr. Hager claims to have submitted the minority opinion, the FDA rejected the over-the-counter application.
The Post article followed an explosive piece in The Nation alleging that Dr. Hager sexually violated his wife frequently throughout their 32-year marriage. According to Linda Carruth-Davis, Hager’s former wife, his public moralizing on sexual matters clashed with his deplorable treatment of her during their marriage. Davis alleges that between 1995 and their divorce in 2002, Hager repeatedly sodomized her without her consent.
The revelations in the Washington Post and The Nation prompted Senators Hilary Clinton and Patty Murray to send a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt urging him to launch an investigation into the memo sent by Dr. Hager to Acting FDA Commissioner Lester Crawford on Plan B.
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