Plan B - NEWS Headlines

In Bay Area, approval of Plan B raises hopes but also fears - Meredith May, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, August 25, 2006
As Bay Area women got word they will soon be able to buy the morning-after pill without a prescription, many hailed the decision as a major victory for women's rights. At the same time, a debate has just begun over how Plan B will change the lives of women and girls, what it could do to reduce the rate of unwanted pregnancies, and whether the pills could encourage promiscuity, especially among impressionable teens.

Plan B Pill To Be Sold Over The Counter
Thursday August 24, 2006 9:51pm Reporter: Shawn Kochinsky Posted By: Shawn Kochinsky
The Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday that women will soon be able to buy the emergency contraception, Plan-B, over the counter. The FDA says women over 18 and men purchasing for their partners can buy Plan B, without a doctor's note, but only from pharmacies. Plan B reduces the odds of getting pregnant by 89 percent if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex. But some opponents say it would only encourage unprotected sex and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.

FDA's Decision on Plan B is a Victory for Women's Advocacy Groups
Community Reacts to FDA's Decision on Plan B
FDA 's Decision on Plan B is a Victory for Women's Advocacy Groups - by Ramonica R. Jones
Thursday's decision by the Food and Drug Administration gives women easier access to emergency contraception. Soon, they'll be able to buy the Morning After Pill over the counter without a prescription if they can prove they are at least 18 years old.

Plan B maker faces challenge in marketing product
By Theresa Howard, USA TODAY
NEW YORK - Plan B won the Food and Drug Administration's approval Thursday for over-the-counter sales to consumers age 18 and over, but you won't see the "emergency contraception" pills alongside condoms in a CVS, much less a convenience store, any time soon.
A prescription still is required for females 17 and younger, and the dual status presents marketing challenges for Duramed, a unit of Barr Pharmaceuticals (BRL), in trying to cash in on much larger sales potential. It will have to do a delicate dance to get its single-use, pale purple packages with two little white pills into the hands of age-appropriate consumers.