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Check out…
…The Nation on emergency contraception: Plan B for Plan B.
It’s a good background piece on all the FDA/Barr Pharmaceuticals craziness that–as we all know–ended up screwing women out of EC over-the-counter.
And of course an article on EC wouldn’t be complete without a mention of everyone’s favorite rapist, W. David Hager:
As The Nation first reported in May, an FDA staff member contacted Dr. W. David Hager–a controversial evangelical Ob-Gyn on the panel who voted against Plan B–and requested that Hager write a “minority opinion” to further elucidate objections he raised during the hearings; namely, that wider access to emergency contraception would increase “risky behavior” among girls as young as 11 or 12 [see McGarvey, "Dr. Hager's Family Values," May 30].
But the FDA had on hand six independent studies confirming that expanded access to Plan B in no way increased sexual activity among young teens (and subsequent studies have confirmed those results).
Despite an intense lobbying effort by physicians and women’s groups, in May 2004 top FDA officials bowed to election-year pressures and denied Barr’s application to make Plan B available over the counter. The rejection letter to the manufacturer echoed precisely Hager’s concerns about the safe use of the drug by girls under 16.
I love that Hager is “concerned” about teen girls but not so worried about anally raping his wife. Lovely.