The morning after FDA approval

In a landmark decision for proponents of greater sexual freedom, the Food and Drug Administration approved Plan B, the morning-after pill, for nonprescription use by women 18 years of age and older, Thursday. In the coming months, Plan B will become available in pharmacies across the country for purchase at the counter after a thorough check of a photo ID. Men can purchase the drug for their partners as well. \nYoung women aged 17 and younger, however, will still need to have a prescription to purchase the packet of concentrated chemicals, which, if taken within 72 hours, can prevent pregnancy after sexual intercourse. \nPlan B is not to be confused with abortion pills. If a woman is already pregnant, Plan B is not effective. \nGaining the freedom to purchase a pill that could prevent the consequence (i.e. an unwanted child or an abortion) of either an oversight or an accident without an unnecessary trip to the doctor is a great advancement. It can definitely be counted as one more win for the side of personal freedom and sexual rights. If an accident were to happen on a weekend, a holiday or a vacation (times when doctors are less accessible and accidents are arguably more likely to happen), the panic can be eased within a reasonable amount of time with a trip to the local 24-hour pharmacy.\nThough this policy comes as a great victory for sexual rights advocates and sexually active men and women, we believe that this access is still not broad enough. As long as the United States continues to have one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the Western world, the access to this effective and low-impact intervention must extend to women at least as young as 16. \nResearch has found that Plan B is safe and effective for sexually mature women of any age. So why the restriction for those under the age of 18? When a government administration advocates abstinence-only sexual education in the face of 3 million unplanned pregnancies a year, what else could be expected but another profound example of denial of the sexual lifestyles of our high school students? Date rape and broken condoms are not exclusive to college party-goers. Instead of having to live with such terrifying situations alone with no answers, teenage girls should have the same autonomy as the rest of us to practice damage control for their own futures. There is nothing magical that happens upon one's 18th birthday in regards to sexual maturation. \nThe FDA has no business legislating morality. The purpose in its inception was to regulate the safety and honesty of the food and drug industries, and the honest results regarding the tests of Plan B are that it is safe for all ages. That is where the legislation should stand.