The Food and Drug Administration will make the “morning-after pill” available to all women, including minors, over the counter, as ordered by a federal judge earlier this month.
U.S. District Judge Edward Korman approved striking down Plan B One Step’s current over-the-counter age restriction and making the pill available as soon as possible, according to a previous article in Reuters.
While the U.S. Department of Health said “the national teen pregnancy rate has declined almost continuously over the last two decades,” Ohio has one of the highest rates in the country, said Stephanie Kight, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio.
“There’s no medical reason for (Plan B) not to be available for all women,” Kight said. “The only reasons (people) didn’t want (it) to go under counter were political reasons, not medical reasons.”
In 2011, the birth rate for teenagers ages 15 through 19 in Ohio was 34.2, which includes all live births, abortions and miscarriages per 1,000 women each year, according to the United States Department of Health.
In Athens County alone, the pregnancy rate for teenagers ages 15 through 17 was 23.9 per 1,000 adolescent females in 2010, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
Kight added that there is “certainly no evidence” proving that teens and young adults are not having sex because they could not obtain the medications, and therefore the availability of the pill should not cause any more couples to become more sexually active than there already are.
Kight said that the FDA has thoroughly tested the pill and deemed it safe to go over the counter. However, side effects include lower abdominal pain, headaches and dizziness, according to the pill’s website.
Plan B works in similar ways to birth control, and “is not effective in terminating an existing pregnancy,” according to the pill’s website.
Even though the FDA approved the pill, pharmacies in Ohio have the right to refuse to provide it based on moral standards, Kight said.
Representatives of CVS Pharmacy on South Court Street said the decision to sell Plan B is made by the executive of the pharmacy.
While in college, students must stay focused on their lifelong plan, which can be greatly impacted by overall health; therefore, the easy access to Plan B can be beneficial to students, Kight said.
“A great future can be built on great health,” she said.
kf398711@ohiou.edu
