Women living around the country will breathe a sigh of relief this week as the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) declared that women 18 and older will be able to receive the morning-after pill, or Plan B, without a prescription and frankly, it’s about time. Although women living in California, Alaska, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Washington and Vermont, will not notice much change (Plan B has been accessible to women who are 18 and older in these states for some time): this aid is important and will be felt nationwide.
According to an Aug. 25 article in the Los Angeles Times, women in states where the drug was already available will have more access to the pill because pharmacies now will be required to be trained in the administration of Plan B, something that was previously too costly and cumbersome for many pharmacies.
Although this drug will be beneficial in preventing unwanted pregnancies, many fear there is a temptation for abuse of the drug. Instead of girls being more observant of their use of birth control, many think this will be used as a new form of contraception. But instead of selling the morning-after pill next to the cough syrup in the drugstore, Plan B will be sold behind the counter at pharmacies, and pharmacists will be required to ask for identification as proof of age before selling the drug.
Among the many misconceptions about the morning-after pill is that it aborts a pregnancy and kills unborn children, but in fact this medicine simply makes the conditions inside a woman’s body not conducive for pregnancy to occur. If a woman is pregnant when she takes Plan B, the drug isn’t harmful to the fetus in anyway, according to an article found at CNN.com.
While many conservative groups oppose the availability of Plan B, citing moral reasons and saying it is a detriment to families. But allowing unprepared women to become mothers is extremely harmful to families. Many unwed, unprepared mothers are not financially stable enough to care for the expensive needs of children, leaving many children without sufficient resources, including appropriate nutrition, healthcare and supervision.
This pill is, and should only serve, as an emergency contraception and allows women who are unable to provide necessary amenities, affection and time to children an opportunity to postpone motherhood until they’re ready. This pill shouldn’t serve as a substitute to other methods of birth control, and certainly not a habitual practice, but in extreme emergencies where other forms of birth control were ineffective, this can be tremendously useful.
There are many physical repercussions to using Plan B, making the decision to use the pill even more difficult. According to an article in the Aug. 26 issue of the New York Times, women who use the morning-after pill report feeling nauseated, in fact, one woman even reported feeling nauseated for a month after taking the drug. Other physical repercussions include headaches, painful breasts, irregular vaginal bleeding and general pain, according to a medical entry on www.netdoctor.com.
Going to a clinic or Planned Parenthood is already a very embarrassing and emotional experience for many women, especially when there is a possibility that the rest of your life may be altered by taking two tiny pills. Rather than further this already painful experience, this new move by the FDA will hopefully provide couples and single women with this incredible resource and the necessary information so they can make the right decision.