The “morning after” pill controversy
I have quite a lot of feelings about the so-called “morning after” pill. Right now there is a proposal to make the pill (Plan B) available over-the-counter at pharmacies around the country. Given that I’m a pharmacy student and I work in a pharmacy, I’ve discussed the matter some with my preceptor, and we both feel the same way.
I don’t like the idea for a number of reasons, but first let me address this particular NYTimes article piece-by-piece. Unfortunately it doesn’t cover some of the bigger, more important issues which I will address afterwards:
When morning-after pills become more easily available, do women become less diligent about using birth control?
Apparently not, reports a new study in the medical journal BMJ, which looked at what happened in Britain after it became legal to buy emergency contraception without a prescription.
Of course they don’t. Taking Plan B isn’t fun and games; it induces spontaneous ovulation. How many women do you know that enjoy getting their period? Furthermore, women use birth control because it makes life easier when it comes to managing their menstrual cycles and having sex. Oral contraceptives simplify life; taking Plan B introduces a complication: spontaneous ovulation.
The pills are intended to prevent pregnancy if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration has not approved their sale over the counter.
Some critics of the pill argue that easy access to it will make it more likely that people will have unprotected sex.
Perhaps in rare circumstances, but there are already doctors who write prescriptions for Plan B that include refills. The types of people that will use Plan B instead of oral contraceptives are already using it this way, and they are the tiny minority.
On the other hand, the study did not support the argument of people who said that making the pills more available would reduce unwanted pregnancy.
This is also not surprising because if a woman has unprotected sex without being on an oral contraceptive, it is unlikely that she will seek out Plan B immediately. Instead, she’ll wait to see if she’s actually pregnant, because let’s face it, the odds of becoming pregnant from one night don’t seem that high, and so a wait-and-see approach is taken, because the alternative is once again, spontaneous ovulation. Thus the levels of unwanted pregnancy remain the same because it’s not the having to go to the doctor that’s keeping women from using Plan B, it’s the fact that they’ll have to deal with the consequences of using it: spontaneous ovulation.
The bigger issues:
In instances of rape, a woman should see a doctor or counselor: someone who can provide emotional support as well as perhaps writing a prescription for Plan B to prevent unwanted pregnancy. If Plan B is available OTC, this middle, and most crucial step can be eliminated, and a woman may never get the counseling that she needs to work through such a traumatic experience.
Teenagers who are pregnant and don’t want their parents to know, may purchase Plan B thinking that it’s a shortcut to an abortion. Unfortunately, while taking Plan B a few months into pregnancy can “get rid of” an unwanted child, it will more likely simply harm developing fetus/child, and she’ll still have the baby later (assuming she doesn’t get a real abortion down the road), and the baby will likely have very severe birth defects, if not be stillborn. This is not to mention the physical (and mental) impact on the mother herself.
There needs to be an intermediate step between the patient and Plan B. The superfluous issues raised in the New York Times aren’t what’s really at stake here. The physical and mental wellbeing of rape victims, mothers of unwanted children, and unborn babies are the real issue. The societal issues are secondary, and far less important on an individual level.
At my pharmacy, if the choice of whether or not to sell Plan B without a prescription is left to the pharmacist-in-charge, we will not dispense it because of the issues I outlined above. The fluff mentioned by the NYT doesn’t even register on the radar.
Correction: I was mistaken. Plan B does not induce spontaneous ovulation. It prevents a fertilized egg from becoming embedded in the uterine wall.
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i have a question does the pill change females sexual behavior when using the pill?
Comment by Domonique Smith — March 6, 2007 @ 3:31 pm
What do you mean? Change it how?
Comment by Rian — March 10, 2007 @ 9:19 am