Thanks for filling me in on this. I’m curious to know why the age of 18 is used to distinguish between prescription and OTC use. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’m guessing that has to be a strictly legal definition and not a medical one, right?
I think it (OTC nicotine cessation products age restrictions) has more to do with legal constructs and the fact that that cigarettes can’t be sold to people under the age of 18 than medical concerns although I can see why selling nicotine patches, gum, etc. to kids would not be a good idea. For that matter, I would think that selling any OTC drug; cold and cough medicines for example, even Tylenol which can be very dangerous and fatal if too much is taken, to minors would or should be restricted. What if a 14 year old girl walks into a CVS and buys 10 boxes of laxatives? I would think that would raise some red flags but legally – is she prevented from buying them?
But then again many age restrictions and limits are somewhat arbitrary and vary from state to state where they do not fall under federal regulation and they don’t always make sense IMO.
For example an 18 year old can buy six cartons of cigarettes but not a six pack of beer. He can buy a car or lease an apartment, get a credit card but can’t rent a car until he’s 25 (although I think that’s set by the car leasing companies and not by law) A 16 year old can walk into an abortion clinic and get an abortion without parental permission but she can’t buy a pack of cigarettes or the nicotine patch if she’s a smoker and wants to quit. A 15 year old can buy condoms but he can’t buy a lottery ticket. An 18 year can get married (younger in some states) or join the military without parental permission, can be sent to Iraq or Afghanistan and get blown to bits but can’t legally drink until 21. And if a dad buys his 20 year old son a beer before his son is sent on a overseas deployment, technically he's broken the law and could be arrested for it.
When I was 20 years old in the early 80’s, I had a full time job managing a convenience store, was responsible for hiring, firing employees, handled the ordering and banking, owned a car, had a department store credit card and had my own apartment for which I signed the lease solely on my own. At that time in Maryland, I could purchase beer legally being over 18 but under 21 but not wine or liquor. I also had my own medical insurance through my employer. But when I went to a dentist to have an impacted wisdom tooth pulled, even as I wasn’t going under general anesthesia, only local Novocain, the dentist wouldn’t do the extraction unless I brought a parent who had to sign the authorization even though I was paying for it myself. I don’t know or recall if that was a legal requirement at the time or just this dentist’s rule but I was infuriated. I remember arguing with him that if I wanted an abortion, I could get one but having a tooth pulled required me to bring my daddy?
Originally the minimum age for purchasing “Plan B” without a prescription was lowered in 2009 from 18 to 17 years of age, 17 being a somewhat arbitrary age IMO when the age limits for purchasing many other controlled substances is 18 or 21. But in this ruling, removing any age restrictions for purchasing an OTC birth control pill, one with potential side effects, does that mean a 6 year old with cash could now walk into a CVS and purchase it? As long as she isn’t buying cigarettes or a lottery ticket or Sudafed, I guess it’s OK?
If a state has an "age of consent" of 16 written into its criminal code, wouldn't the purchase of an OTC "morning-after pill" by a 15 year-old be evidence that a crime may have been committed?
Good question. And for that matter what if a 15 year old came to a pharmacy with a prescription for a drug to treat an STD? I believe that in order to get a prescription filled for a controlled substance, you must prove you are at least 18 years old but I don't know if that applies to antibiotics.
I believe the age of 18 (and 21) is more or less arbitrarily selected to represent a measure of adulthood. Biologically speaking, the brain is not fully mature until about age 25.
I've been told that in previous centuries, in France, the age of majority was 24. That is a little more in line with biological maturity.