Posted on 03/24/2005 6:34:29 PM PST by LurkedLongEnough
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Maryland senators narrowly and unexpectedly defeated Thursday a bill that would have allowed pharmacists to administer morning-after pills without a prescription.
The bill, in its third year before the General Assembly, garnered more support this year and had enough votes to pass - until several pro-choice senators changed their votes to "no" because of concerns that the pills would be available to underage girls, said Sen. Sharon Grosfeld, D-Montgomery, the bill's sponsor.
The legislation was killed with a 22-24 vote after debate on the floor.
"I'm for a woman's right to choose," said Sen. Sandra Schrader, R-Howard. "But my definition of a woman is not a 12-, 13- or 14-year-old."
Fierce arguments have gone on in the federal Food and Drug Administration over whether to allow drug stores to sell the emergency contraception, known by the brand name of Plan B, without a prescription. Plan B supporters say the pill is a safe way to prevent unwanted pregnancies and the abortions that sometimes follow. They say that offering the pills available over the counter is crucial for women who might need the protection when it is difficult to get a prescription.
The morning-after pill is a higher dose of the contraceptive hormones found in the Pill. It prevents ovulation or fertilization and can prevent a fertilized egg from implanting into the uterus. It doesn't abort pregnancy but if taken within 72 hours of unprotected intercourse, it can cut a woman's chances of pregnancy by up to 89 percent.
FDA advisory committees last year recommended that the drug be made available over the counter, but an agency director said there is not yet enough data about the pill's use by young teenagers or about how it would affect their sexual behavior.
It is a sentiment that was echoed on the Maryland Senate floor Thursday.
"I think it's a public policy that takes us again down another slope," said Sen. Leo Green, D-Baltimore County. "I believe it will be misused by young people, and it will be an enabler for further sexual activity."
Those arguments don't take into account that anyone taking Plan B is already sexually active, Grosfeld said, or that teens already have access to other kinds of contraception without their parents' consent.
"I am very angry at the pro-choice senators who call themselves pro-choice, yet they won't vote for a bill dealing with contraception," she said. "They're saying they'd rather their minor daughter have an abortion rather than have access to emergency contraception."
The bill would have set up a process for pharmacists to be certified by the state Department of Health and Mental Hygiene before getting permission to sell Plan B.
Umm... Error, error, error.... Which fallacy would this be?
What they're saying is that they'd rather their daughter not think it was okay to have unsafe sex, because emergency contraception was so readily available.
The morning after pill goes a lot further than just preventing pregnancies.
It will probably encourage people to engage in unprotected sex.
The people inclined to use that pill, are already inclined to have sex. What you're trying to stop is not them having sex, since that does have more to do with the home and parents than what contraceptive options are available, but you're trying to prevent a pill from being freely available that would, when coupled with a youth's typical delusions of immortality, will probably result in higher instances of sex without barrier method contraceptives.
The thing here is that the morning after pill is being presented as a solution when it is merely a patch. The real solution is going to come out of the home, and the morning after pill will only make it that much harder to ensure the safety and well being of your children.
I agree with you, and these Senators who voted against it.
If it were to be treated in a manner such as alcohol or tobacco and age-restricted for purchase I would be more comfortable with it being OTC.
What a bunch of maroons. That was the whole idea - STOP unwanted teenage pregnancies!!
Oh well, abortion IS a multi-billion busness in this Country...............FRegards
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