In a posting on its Web site Thursday, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) endorsed over-the-counter sales of emergency contraception. The move followed last week's decision by the Food and Drug Administration to again postpone a decision on the issue.
While the AAP last year endorsed a request that FDA permit over-the-counter sales, Thursday's statement marked the group's first detailed advice on the contraceptive. AAP's policy directs doctors to talk about emergency contraception if they discuss sex with teenage patients. The policy states that physicians should consider writing prescriptions for emergency contraception so teenagers can have the pills on hand or access them without delay in the event of unintended or unprotected sex.
The morning-after pill works by blocking ovulation or fertilization and it can prevent pregnancy when taken up to three days after sex. AAP's policy states that while the morning-after pill is safe, doctors should be prepared to discuss conflicting evidence about whether it can disrupt the implantation of a fertilized egg, which some patients could consider an abortion.
"The evidence clearly supports that improving access to emergency contraception either decreases sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy or has no effect on them," said Dr. Jonathan Klein, chairperson of AAP's committee on adolescents. He denied that AAP's policy was politically motivated, a charge leveled by some who oppose the morning-after pill as a form of abortion. The policy will be published in the October issue of Pediatrics. |
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