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Plan B pills now over the counter - agree or disagree?

Silais

That useless reptile
297
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  • Seen Jul 17, 2016
Late Monday night, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finalized its decision to give pharmaceutical giant Teva Pharmaceuticals three years of exclusive rights to sell its brand name Plan B One-Step emergency contraception pill over-the-counter to women of all ages. The agency will also allow less expensive generic versions of the morning after pill to be sold without a prescription — but those will only be available to women aged 17 years and older for the next three years, after which the restrictions will lapse.

Under the new regulations, generic versions of single pill emergency contraception may be stocked on drug store shelves, but will require women to present identification proving that they're at least 17 to buy it. That means that women under 17 seeking emergency contraception will only have the brand name option available to them while Teva still has its market exclusivity. Generic versions of the morning after pill cost about $20 or $30 less than the $60 Plan B.

In April, U.S. District Judge Edward Korman ordered the FDA to remove restrictions on Plan B, which until then required a prescription for all women under 17. The Obama administration tried to lower the acceptable age for OTC Plan B to 15 and asked Korman to delay his order. In a fiery ruling, Korman denied the government's request and called the administration's age cutoff "an insult to the intelligence of women." He also criticized the fact that only Teva would be authorized to sell its products over-the-counter under the proposal, calling it a "sweetheart arrangement" between the pharmaceutical giant and the FDA that would disproportionately affect the poor and hike prices for young women seeking emergency contraception.

The FDA finally relented in June, when it officially brought Plan B out from behind the counter. But the agency still had to decide what to do about generic versions of the pill — and it ultimately chose to keep the one-pill generics out of young Americans' reach for the next three years. The government is permitted to give exclusive marketing rights "to drug firms that fund and conduct clinical trials that are deemed essential to the drug's approval," according to the Los Angeles Times.

The decision won't just affect younger women who are less likely to have disposable income to spend on expensive brand name drugs. Undocumented women who are over age 17 but lack a government-issued ID won't be able to get the cheaper generic pills, either. Teva has promised not to hike Plan B's costs despite its market exclusivity.
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http://thinkprogress.org/health/201...-limits-access-to-cheaper-morning-after-pill/

Do you think that it is a good thing that Plan B is now available over the counter? If so, why? If not, why not? I'm interested to see what other people think here.
 
Esper

Esper

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It's good to see contraception more easily available, but I don't like that they'll only sell the generic version to women with ID. What's so different that the generic version needs ID for? Nothing. Well, some people have preferences and different reactions to different drugs, but that only highlights the need for options. This is just a way to make more money for a big corporation and it's going to hurt poorer and younger people who are less likely to have ID or much extra money. And what about men who might be picking the medicine up for their wives, girlfriends, etc.?
 
Mana1

Mana1

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Scarf said:
It's good to see contraception more easily available, but I don't like that they'll only sell the generic version to women with ID.
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This!

Also the point the article highlights, about Plan B being at least $30 more expensive than generic brands. Surely this is taking advantage of people? And, pardon the stereotype, but I'd imagine that a lot of people who are in need of this kind of pill don't have $60 to splash.
 

FreakyLocz14

Conservative Patriot
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Just terrible! And dangerous for women! Drugs require prescriptions because of how risky they are, and Plan B is very risky. This is just a way for big pharma to make money at the expense of desperate women! I hope that Congress and/or state legislatures act on this as soon possible.
 
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Livewire

Livewire

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While I don't like the corporate aspect of this (giant pharmaceutical company gouging the hell out of the consumer for a profit), having contraception more easily available for those who need it is a very good thing. It's a step in the right direction.
 
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droomph

droomph

weeb
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I think it's kinda nice, because they have the choice.

I mean, not everybody has to buy Tylenol simply because it's over the counter and you have the flu, you could also use home remedies like chicken soup and a lot of love from gramma…

So it's better that we give them the choice. thooooooough I will say that the "generics only for ID"s thing is kinda weird, and that the medicine itself might be dangerous because of the whole "messing with hormones" thing.
 
Esper

Esper

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FreakyLocz14 said:
Just terrible! And dangerous for women! Drugs require prescriptions because of how risky they are, and Plan B is very risky. This is just a way for big pharma to make money at the expense of desperate women! I hope that Congress and/or state legislatures on on this as soon possible.
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Don't plenty of other countries have this? Have they seen a spike in contraception-related injuries/side effects/etc.?

droomph said:
I think it's kinda nice, because they have the choice.

I mean, not everybody has to buy Tylenol simply because it's over the counter and you have the flu, you could also use home remedies like chicken soup and a lot of love from gramma…

So it's better that we give them the choice. thooooooough I will say that the "generics only for ID"s thing is kinda weird, and that the medicine itself might be dangerous because of the whole "messing with hormones" thing.
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Not to get off topic, but there are some home remedies that involve making your body chemically too inhospitable for pregnancy. They're not what I'd call fool-proof and it's better just to use the stuff in pills. Just thought I'd throw this in while I was here.

Mysonne said:
I don't agree with the Plan B pill because it is against God's will!

You see, how conception happens is that when a man's sperm meets with a woman's egg and, when God notices the sperm is in the womb, he gives a soul to the sperm and the sperm comes to life and turns into a baby!
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I'm not sure if you're serious, but if you are, what do you say to people who aren't religious and/or have different religious interpretations to conception?
 

Shiny Celebi

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Mysonne said:
Christianity is the one true religion
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Not everyone agrees. In this country a person is allowed to believe as they wish.

On topic: I do think this is a good thing, birth control should be easier to get to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
 

Sir Codin

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Over-the-counter contraception readily available to women who have every right to do what they want with whatever is in their bodies?

GOOD.

More expensive than other brands?

NOT GOOD. Fix that and we're golden.
 
Melody

Melody

Banned
6,460
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This is a good thing, corporate problems or not.

I personally don't have any problem with requiring women to be 18 and have ID to buy Plan 'B'. It prevents the availability of the drugs from interfering with parental rights. Yes it's unfortunate that some parents are stupid enough not to buy Plan 'B' for their child; but I see this as a fair enough compromise for now, and the restriction isn't meant to make it unavailable to those that need it.

Besides, this won't stop adult women from obtaining the generic brand for their friends. I doubt that much any FDA/Federal regulations are going to stop it with any amount of success. The rule is pretty much a PR stunt to make it look like they're trying to concede to conservative concerns.

I'm also going to point out that minors have long had a distinct lack of rights in this country for a number of reasons.
 

Silais

That useless reptile
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I would hope that it's not gender restricted. It should be no one's business who buys the EC pills even if they're prescription.
 

Arlo

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I couldn't care less that it's available over the counter, though I do wonder who Teva bribed for that exclusivity deal, and just what sort of warped justification the FDA provided for it. It seems pretty obvious that the point of that is simply to maximize Teva's profits at the expense of the customers least able to protest being forced to pay more than everyone else.
 
Esper

Esper

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Cassino said:
This. Is there any reason for any drug to be sex-restricted?
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A little looking around has brought me to the argument that rapists/abusers/kidnappers/etc. could be forcing their victims to take it, or that ne'er-do-wells of any kind could be giving it to women without their knowledge. I dunno. Those sound more like urban legends dreamed up by someone with an extreme dislike of contraception/abortion/etc. so I don't give them much credit. Also, I find it ironic especially in the second scenario because the argument relies on women's choices being denied by the supposed evil doer slipping them pills. Not to say that it wouldn't be horrible if someone did this, but I don't think the potential for it is enough to warrant not letting men buy the pills.

Arlo said:
I couldn't care less that it's available over the counter, though I do wonder who Teva bribed for that exclusivity deal, and just what sort of warped justification the FDA provided for it. It seems pretty obvious that the point of that is simply to maximize Teva's profits at the expense of the customers least able to protest being forced to pay more than everyone else.
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In general don't the creators and/or discoverers of drugs get special treatment as an incentive for big drug companies to bother coming up with new drugs? You know, because no one would bother to come up with a cure for cancer if they couldn't make money off of it. /sarcasm
 
Livewire

Livewire

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I agree, the "well they could be slipping it to people under the table" comes across as a bit paranoid and such.

And, they gave it to Teva probably because it's the largest generic drug manufacturer in the world, based in Israel. Makes the most money that way.
 

Plumpyfoof

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"An insult to the intelligence of women."
I'm sorry I giggled at this. It's as if he's suggesting women get less intelligent as they develop, rofl.
Where I'm from intelligence is absent in any woman under the age of 17. They're marketing to the wrong people, in my town they would make an absolute killing by selling this drug to girls aged 12 - 16. There is something seriously broken with this and it's not only that you can have a twelvie in your pants as soon as you snap your fingers.
 
gimmepie

gimmepie

25,481
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@Scarf

Even if rapists were forcing victims (like all rape victims are woman, smh) to take the pill that isn't necessarily a bad thing. It could prevent women from ending up with children who they can't help but despise or children who hate themselves because of their parentage. Rape is bad and it wouldn't justify the act of course, but it does seem like a good thing if you take this stance.

That other argument is just ridiculously paranoid. There's nothing more to add.

@Plumpy - Pretty much. But perhaps the idea is "not to encourage underage sex". Because it totally would.
 
Entermaid

Entermaid

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Scarf said:
A little looking around has brought me to the argument that rapists/abusers/kidnappers/etc. could be forcing their victims to take it, or that ne'er-do-wells of any kind could be giving it to women without their knowledge. I dunno. Those sound more like urban legends dreamed up by someone with an extreme dislike of contraception/abortion/etc. so I don't give them much credit. Also, I find it ironic especially in the second scenario because the argument relies on women's choices being denied by the supposed evil doer slipping them pills. Not to say that it wouldn't be horrible if someone did this, but I don't think the potential for it is enough to warrant not letting men buy the pills.
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I can see this being an issue. Though, I would be more concerned about boyfriends, husbands, ect. slipping the pills the women's drinks. The woman might be baby crazy, where as here significant other doesn't want to have children or additional children. I can see this being a prevalent issue with not restricting the pill by sex. Further, like certain other over the counter medications, pseudoephedrine or ephedrine, there should be a database of purchase record in order to oversee these issues. Since, women can purchase these pills for men, who can use them on women, or women can use them on other women. For instance a friend, sister, mother, to either party might also not want the woman to have a child. Additionally, age might be a factor! A 60 year old woman should not be buying plan-b periodically, for reasons aforementioned. I would agree with restricting by age and sex, as well as keep a Federal database in order to address abuses.
 
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