Backyard Conservative has an excellent post on the FDA’s decision to allow Plan B, the “morning-after pill,” to be sold over the counter at pharmacies to anyone over age 18 without a prescription.We at the Independent Women’s Forum are neutral on abortion, welcoming both pro-life and pro-choice women to our ranks, so the abortion issues arising from Plan B aren’t ours.
We do, however, care very much about the early sexualization of young girls (see Carol’s post on Aug. 25)–and that’s what Backyard is writing about. It’s especially troubling because Plan B’s manufacturer, Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc., is already pushing the FDA to remove the age restriction that requires girls age 17 and younger to obtain a doctor’s prescription in order to use the drug. The FDA says there’s not enough evidence that it’s safe for younger teen-agers and pre-teens to take the massive amounts of hormones in Plan B. No problem, says Barr’s chairman, Bruce L. Downey: Here’s what the New York Times reports:
“Barr will study Plan B’s use in young adolescents in hopes of getting the agency’s age restrictions lifted, Mr. Downey said.
“‘In my mind,’ he said, ‘if we go back and have an adequate study that includes the younger group, the basis for any age restriction goes away.'”
What????
As Backyard writes:
“Well, why not, let’s look at these 11-14 year olds’ sexual activity, and up to age 18. And, as the age of menarche has been dropping steadily for a century, there are even possible subjects as young as 8! Fertile ground you might say, a new market.
“I’d be interested in how the drug company achieves enough trials to be statistically significant….
“Is the push for over the counter sales of Plan B an abrogation of responsibility for young girls, driven by the aging feminist agenda?”
A good question.