Plan B Approved for OTC Sales

On Thursday, the FDA approved over-the-counter sales of Plan B emergency contraception for women 18 and older. The drug will be behind the counter at pharmacies. It is not clear how some pharmacists' refusal to dispense prescribed Plan B will be affected by the ruling, given that the pharmacisits will still be in a dispensing role.

FDA Resources:

FDA Press Release

Memo from von Eschenbach explaining his rationale for making the age limit 18 instead of 17 (PDF)

Memo from Dr. Galson, addressing previously raised issues from the approval process (PDF)

Plan B Questions and Answers

Approval Letter (PDF)

Labeling (PDF)

Additional Plan B info

Media:

CNN: Morning-after pill to be available without prescription

Washington Post: FDA approves Plan B's over-the-counter sale

MSNBC: FDA OKs nonprescription 'morning-after' pill - includes links to NBC and CNBC video

New York Times: New York women see 2 sides of prescription-free morning-after pill and FDA approves broader access to next-day pill [NYT - would it have been so far to spell out "two," or to use the proper names of Plan B or emergency contraception?]

NPR: Plan B gets FDA's over-the-counter approval, How Plan B works, Plan B pill to be sold over-the-counter,

Responses, from Organizations:

Concerned Women for America - see multimedia content for response. The organizations chief counsel says the decision "borders on malfeasance in office for the head of the FDA." She also invokes the spectre alcohol and sex parties for teens, and calls the decision "a dream come true for statutory rapists." The interviewee thinks men will slip the drug into the drinks of their statutory rape victims, and uses the number of pregnant teens who have sex with adult men as a rational against the drug.

Human Life International, and another, calling for the withdrawal of von Eschenbach's nomination.

Focus on the Family

Planned Parenthood press release

NARAL Pro Choice America (NARAL also just released their Congressional Record on Choice report.)

Center for Reproductive Rights

National Organization for Women

Pharmacists for Life International simply links to a news story on the approval, with an image of the drug and the caption, "BETRAYAL."

Responses, from Bloggers:

Salon's Broadsheet

Feministing on the news and the conservative response

Mother Jones blog

Molly Saves the Day - Too Little, Too Soon

Typecasted

WE Blog - makes the point that those complaining that politics led to the approval should recall the politics that delayed the process for years in the first place. Lots of comments.

Needlenose

The Consumerist

Women's Bioethics Project

All Girl Army

Woozle Madness

Thoughts of an Average Woman

The Well-Timed Period is angry, and makes some good points.

Bitch PhD has a tale of the runaround women can experience when attempting to obtain emergency contraception.

Technorati Tags: emergency contraception; FDA; Plan B; Reproductive Rights
MeSH Tags: Contraception, Postcoital; Levonorgestrel