Plan B Sales Soar and So Does the Controversy

Tuesday July 17, 2007

The popularity of Plan B has escalated since the August 24, 2006 FDA decision to approve the sale of this emergency contraceptive without a prescription. Also known as the morning-after pill, Plan B consists of two pills that, when taken within 5 days of unprotected sex, can help to prevent pregnancy.

The manufacturer of Plan B, Barr Pharmaceuticals, is estimating that sales of this contraceptive have doubled since it was approved to be sold over-the-counter to those who are at least 18 years old. Sales of Plan B have increased from about $40 million annually to an expected $80 million for 2007.

Along with the increase in sales, is the intensification of controversy that surrounds the use of Plan B. There is strong debate in regard to conscientious objection and whether pharmacists and Roman Catholic hospitals that have moral objections to the use of Plan B should be obligated to dispense it. The Center for Reproductive Rights is suing the FDA to remove the age restriction for nonprescription access whereas the Family Research Council (and others) are suing the FDA to reverse the Plan B decision. Opponents are still trying to erroneously contend than Plan B amounts to an abortion; this is a view that is not supported by the medical community, who assert that emergency contraception will not terminate a pregnancy – in fact, it prevents one!

Given that the U.S. teen birth rate is still the highest in the industrialized world and nearly a third of American females will become pregnant at least once before they reach 20, advocates are trying to remove the age limitation on Plan B. There is no medical reason why sexually active teenagers should not be able to use this drug. And, according to the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, "there's every reason to expect they would benefit most from it, since impulsive teens are more likely to have unprotected sex than are adults".

Yet, our Congressional leaders would rather turn a blind eye and continue to promote abstinence-only sex education programs that don’t work and make political and theological decisions about the nonprescription sale of Plan B rather than base their actions on facts and science. It is because of such governmental incompetency that the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy’s new interactive website for teenagers is likely to include information about Plan B. As the Campaign claims, the morning-after pill is “100 times better than getting pregnant at 14."