FDA Approves Emergency Contraceptive ellaOne
I recently wrote a post about the controversial proposal of making birth control pills available over-the-counter, and in even more controversial news, on Friday the FDA approved a new (prescription only) emergency contraceptive. This new emergency contraception is not the morning after pill, but it’s not an abortion pill either.
From The New York Times…
Federal drug regulators on Friday approved a new form of emergency contraceptive pill that prevents pregnancies if taken as many as five days after unprotected intercourse.
. . .
Women who have unprotected intercourse have about 1 chance in 20 of becoming pregnant. Those who take Plan B within three days cut that risk to about 1 in 40, while those who take ella would cut that risk to about 1 in 50, regulators say.
The controversy surrounding emergency contraceptives comes mainly from the pro-life (or anti-abortion) community, which is confusing to me because there are hopes that these medications could someday reduce the need for clinical abortions. The main sticking point seems to be that this group of people believe that life begins the moment of conception (or fertilization), and that these emergency contraception medications “abort” a fertilized egg.
Read the full post at BlogHer Health & Wellness
