The Food and Drug Administration has recently lifted the age limit to purchase the morning-after pill to 17, a decision that has stirred a great debate. The FDA’s decision will now make it OK for teens to have access to the “Plan B” pill without a prescription and is still considering making the pill available without any age restriction. The question is, do we really want teens to have access to this pill?
Plan B is emergency contraception, a backup method to birth control. It’s in the form of two pills that are taken by mouth after unprotected sex. Plan B is essentially a high dosage of the birth control pill. It is recommended for use after sexual intercourse, over a period of 72 hours, to achieve the goal of preventing pregnancy. Plan B can reduce a woman’s risk of pregnancy when taken as directed, though it’s not always 100 percent effective. If a fertilized egg is implanted prior to taking Plan B, Plan B will not work.
Bringing the age limit down to 17 is like giving teens the “green light” to have sex without taking all the necessary precautions. The FDA’s decision could result in the drug being used the wrong way. Many teens now-a-days engage in sexual intercourse and using these pills will only keep promoting it. It sends the message that they can keep having sex as much as they want without consequences. With this pill available to anyone, who’s to say that the number of teens having sex won’t increase? Teens will be able to say “There’s a pill. Nothing bad can happen.” Over-the-counter availability will now allow these drugs to be used routinely, despite the fact that they are contraindicated for such use.
How can people say that this pill will result in fewer abortions, when in fact Plan B can cause them? There is substantial evidence that Plan B may act by preventing the development of the embryo or interfering with the process of implantation. The morning-after pill impeding the implantation of the unborn child into the uterus following conception is considered an early abortion. What about the health issues that comes with this pill? Since Plan B is marketed to those who have unprotected sex, Plan B will cause an increase in rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STD’s). Most women using this contraceptive are concerned with avoiding pregnancy as well as their partners, the last thing crossing their minds while engaging in the “thrill of the moment” is other consequences that could come from unprotected sex. They may not be as concerned about preventing STDs and use the pill as a “back-up”.
Of course there are always two sides to everything. In today’s society, teens are going to continue to have sex no matter what anyone says or tries to do to better the situation. Things happen and sometimes taking all the precautions can “backfire”. A variety of things can happen that make the pill an option. In particular the pill has proven to be of value to rape victims, couples who have a condom break during sex or women/girls who have been lured into having sex while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Schools should invest more in helping promote safe sex. Involving parents more in sex prevention courses at the schools will give parents some real factors and ideas on how to better address the topic with their children. Oftentimes parents are too consumed with their work, their own school, church and or any other activities to really focus on certain details, other parents simply just don’t know how to approach their children with such a touchy topic, leaving them to fend for themselves; to rely on schools, friends and peers. Schools not always have the means and or resources to provide and educate all areas of the topic. Friends more times than just “go with the flow” and practice sex based on other friends experiences. Peer pressure increases more and more each day, which is a huge problem.
Teens need to be more responsible and take better care of themselves. Needing a prescription to get the morning-after pill is not a bad thing. The pill isn’t going to just disappear forever. Any mother can still get these pills for their child if anything should happen and they do need the pill.