NARAL Pro-Choice New York Brings Out Dinos to Expose Politicians Pre-Historic Position on Birth Control
For Release:
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Contact: Bob Jaffe (917) 969-3545
Dinosaurs Roam Long Island
NARAL Pro-Choice New York Brings Out Dinos to Expose Politicians Pre-Historic Position on Birth Control
NARAL Pro-Choice New York volunteers, wearing dinosaur costumes, distributed flyers and dinosaur toys to hundreds of people attending a health fair co-sponsored by State Senator Carl Marcellino in Oyster Bay, criticizing the Senator for being a “dinosaur” on women’s health.
Senator Marcellino voted against the Unintended Pregnancy Prevention Act (S.6686) in June 2005, legislation which would allow women to go directly to a pharmacy to obtain the “morning after pill.” The measure passed the Assembly and Senate last session and was vetoed by Governor Pataki. The bill, already passed by the Assembly, is now awaiting action in the Senate.
“Senator Marcellino is acting like a dinosaur when it comes to women’s health. You would think that the Senator would do anything to prevent abortion. Instead, he’s denying women birth control and the ability to prevent an unintended pregnancy and avoid an abortion. Senator Marcellino has to put aside politics and do what’s best for women,” said Erica Rothchild, a Huntington resident and Marcellino constituent.
The Unintended Pregnancy Prevention Act seeks to remove barriers to the “morning after pill” in New York by permitting pharmacists to dispense this back-up method of birth control. The “morning after pill”, often known as emergency contraception (EC) and marketed as Plan B, are birth control pills that must be taken within 120 hours of sexual activity to prevent an unintended pregnancy and reduce the need for abortion. EC is more effective in preventing pregnancy the earlier it is taken. By having direct access to EC, women could avoid incurring the high costs of unnecessary medical visits and obtain the medication from pharmacies that are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. EC does not cause an abortion and is not to be confused with the mifepristone , often known as the “abortion pill” or RU-486.
New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi estimated that wider access to EC could lead to 80,000 fewer abortions in New York and save taxpayers close to $500 million in health care costs associated with unintended pregnancy. Under the Bush Administration’s Food and Drug Administration, efforts to allow EC to be sold over-the-counter have been blocked, despite overwhelming medical support from health groups. In New York State, more than 100 groups support the Unintended Pregnancy Prevention Act, including medical organizations, nurses, pharmacists and others.
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