NARAL's statement is here. I got this one via email (bolding mine):
Obama Administration Overrules FDA Approval of Plan B One-Step
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 7, 2011
Obama Administration Overrules FDA Approval of Plan B One-Step for Over-the-Counter Sale for Women of All Ages
NARAL Pro-Choice New York Calls Decision “Deeply Disappointing Betrayal”
NEW YORK—Today the FDA announced the Secretary of Health and Human Services – for the first time ever – has invoked her authority to overrule the agency’s decision to approve the emergency contraceptive pill Plan B One-Step for full over-the-counter sale, which would have removed what was widely recognized to be a politically motivated age restriction on its access. This is the first time in history the Health Secretary has ever used this power to overrule an FDA decision. Had the FDA decision gone into effect, women of all ages would have been able to purchase this back-up birth control method without a prescription and without delays at the pharmacy counter.
“This is a deeply disappointing betrayal from an Administration that had pledged to promote the health and well-being of women and families and be guided by science and medicine,” said Andrea Miller, President of NARAL Pro-Choice New York. “The evidence is clear, the FDA has done more than its due diligence, and women across the nation deserve ready access to a safe, effective second chance to prevent an unintended pregnancy. The decision to overrule the FDA is reminiscent of a troubling era, when the Bush Administration routinely allowed politics to trump science, especially in its interference with the FDA’s deliberations over this product.”
The FDA first approved Plan B as a prescription product in 1999. Seven years later, in 2006, the FDA approved over-the-counter access to Plan BÒ for those eighteen and older – an age restriction later deemed by the Government Accountability Office and federal courts to be politically, not scientifically, motivated. In response, the age restriction on the over-the-counter product was lowered to seventeen the following year.
Because of the resulting “dual-label” status, emergency contraception has been stocked behind the pharmacy counter, creating significant hurdles for anyone needing timely access. Even women seventeen and older, who were eligible for over-the-counter access, have had to produce a government-issued ID to prove their age before buying the product. Having Plan B One-Step available on the pharmacy shelves would have finally removed those barriers.
Long-standing scientific and medical evidence has shown that emergency contraception is safe and effective for women of all ages, including teens. “It’s not easy to think about teens having sex, but if they are, it’s our responsibility to ensure they have timely access to all their options to reduce the chance of an unintended pregnancy,” Miller said. “Especially here in New York City, where some neighborhoods have teen pregnancy rates that are among the highest in the nation, we should be working together to ensure that young women have the knowledge and ability to prevent an unintended pregnancy – including after sex.”
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Andrea Miller
President
NARAL Pro-Choice New York
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