FDA Finally Puts EC Over-The-Counter
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 24, 2006
Contact: Mary Alice Carr – 646-326-4238
Statement from Kelli Conlin,
President, NARAL Pro-Choice New York
On the FDA’s Decision to Make Plan B® Emergency Contraception Available Over-The-Counter
“The FDA’s decision today to allow over-the-counter sales of emergency contraception is a hard fought victory for American women. For three long years, we have asked the FDA to follow the advice of its own doctors and make EC available for all women. This moment would never have come had it not been for the steadfast leadership of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton who kept continuous pressure on the FDA to issue a decision.
However, today’s decision is a partial victory that ignores the need to reduce teen pregnancy in America and sends the wrong message about the safety of this product. The FDA’s own experts have found no medical reason to restrict EC to women 18 and over and have ignored volumes of scientific data that shows that EC is safe for women of all ages. We are determined to ensure and protect access for teens to this safe and effective back up birth control method that can substantially reduce the abortion rate.”
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Today, the FDA announced its decision to grant approval for Barr Laboratories application for over-the-counter status for Plan B®, commonly known as emergency contraception (EC). Plan B® will now be available without a prescription to women eighteen years of age and older but will remain a prescription-only product for women seventeen and younger.
Emergency contraception-also known as "the morning-after pill"- is a concentrated dose of birth control pills, which works to prevent pregnancy when taken within five days of unprotected sex.
**Spokespeople available for comment**
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