Editorial

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decided on August 26 to keep the morning-after-pill as a prescription-only drug, rather than having it be sold over the counter.

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But the federal agency also asked for people to give their comments on this decision. FDA Commissioner Lester M. Crawford announced the start of a 60-day comment period on this matter. "These regulatory and policy questions are too profound and cut across too many different products to be made behind closed doors," he said.

Welcomes decision. A U.S. bishops' pro-life official welcomed the FDA's decision to keep Plan B - the name of the emergency contraceptive - as a prescription-only drug. Gail Quinn, executive director of the U.S. bishops' Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, noted that recent studies in California and Scotland showed clear results: pregnancy and abortion rates were no different among women with immediate access to emergency contraceptives and a control group who had to request a prescription from a doctor.

Quinn also voiced concerns about the "potentially lethal risk to human life at its earliest stages." Some say the FDA should not have approved of this regimen in the first place. "The morning-after pill has the potential of preventing implantation of a newly formed life, said Peggy Hamill, state director of Pro-Life Wisconsin. "This is an early chemical abortion and our government should not be in the business of endorsing abortion causing drugs," she said.

Effects of easy access. Studies have shown that easy access to the morning-after pill does not decrease underage pregnancy, abortion, or sexually transmitted diseases, she pointed out. "In fact, there are studies showing that it increases them by encouraging sexual promiscuity."

Last year, the FDA refused to grant over-the-counter status to the morning-after pill, citing incomplete data on the impact to easy access to the pill on adolescents. But Barr Laboratories, the maker of Plan B, petitioned the FDA to let the drug be sold over the counter. Barr Laboratories' new application requests that the drug be made available to anyone age 16 and over, but would require a prescription for children under 16 years of age.

Hamill notes that it's impossible to enforce this marketing scheme. "An adult male could easily buy this drug for a 13-year-old he is abusing. In addition, there are known health risks associated with this drug. With other drugs, a 16-year-old girl is going to naturally consult with an adult if something goes wrong. When you're dealing with teen sex, the secrecy around this issue is going to keep a young teenager from getting help if she needs it."

Give your opinion. Pro-Life Wisconsin is urging concerned citizens to call or write to FDA Commissioner Lester Crawford and President George W. Bush to urge them to reject Barr Pharmaceutical's application for over-the-counter sales of the morning-after pill.

Here's how to contact them:

• FDA Commissioner Crawford - phone 301-827-2410 or e-mail: commissioner@FDA.gov

• President Bush at the White House - phone 202-456-1111 or e-mail: president@whitehouse.gov

We must be concerned about the impact of making emergency contraceptives available to children over the counter. We must do whatever we can to protect the physical, moral, and spiritual health of our young people. This is one step we can take.

Mary C. Uhler