Thanks for this informative piece Fit. As a woman who works in women's' health care (specifically OB/GYN and Family Planning) I know that a great deal of women are misinformed on this product.

Another good point to note, Pharmacists (at least in PA where I live) can make a personal decision not to dispense this product. You can walk into a pharmacy and receive Plan B from the physician on duty and someone going the next day may be refused this product by a Pharmacist who makes the choice to not dispense this drug.

Good Point Tra

I do however think that its truly sad that people in charge of looking after our health can choose to not supply us with a drug that we have every right to access. I think PERSOANLLY that when we go to work we ought to leave our personal opinions at home and do our jobs.
Thanks for this post Fit!!

People have opinions and values that you can't leave at home. If your job demanded that you wear fur or eat meat (or dispense it) when you don't believe that it is right, then you wouldn't want to do it either. Every job allows people to make moral decisions and everyone should be allowed to make those decisions on their own. Someone shouldn't have to go against their morals for your convenience.

Agreed 100% Aembry. Some doctors and pharmacists actually abide by the Hippocratic Oath and believe that life begins at conception, therefore Plan B interferes with it. Therefore, dispensing Plan B, in their eyes, violates the oath they took when they started their career in medicine. It's the same as how a doctor has the choice whether or not to counsel a patient regarding abortion and how OB/GYN's have the choice to provide abortions or not.

~Bonnie~

Interesting debate, girls. I am a pharmacy tech, and we are talking about this a lot at work right now. I know 2 of the pharmacists I work with will NOT dispense Plan B because they feel that it is against their morals. The third pharmacist will dispense Plan B. I have yet to have anyone ask me for it, but I will sell it to them because I feel that it is not my decision, and I don't know what that person's circumstances are. But I believe that every person has to do what they feel is morally right.
It is tricky, because my direct boss is one who will not sell it. She told us all that it is up to us to make the decision, in other words, we have no "official" policy.

I agree 3Sweeties. It's kind of scary to hear someone who truly believes other people should leave their ethics at home when they go to work.

I worked for a pharmacy tech for 6 years and one of the pharmacists was religious. I had a problem with him making the decision not to carry it in the pharmacy. He was also the pharmacy manager so it was up to him whether it would even be ordered. So even if the other pharmacists would have dispensed it, they could not since it was not on our shelves.

**sh*te** worked AS not for....

I mean, what about the chance that a woman was raped, for example. My boss would prefer that we not carry it at all. I guess I look at it from the standpoint of, I don't even know if conception occured. I am not the one taking the medication, all I do is ring it up and put it in a bag. So morally, I don't think it will bother me. However, as I said, no one has asked me yet.
Before it was OTC, we did have one woman who filled the scrip 3 (3!) times. Her husband picked it up. That definetly did bother us. It is their decision to have a baby or not, but they need to plan a lot better than that.

3Sweeties - I don't have a moral issue with Plan B. Even if used repeatedly. On a functional level, there's really no difference between it and birth control.

I do have an issue with the idea that we should allow a majority to decide how the minority is allowed to behave with respect to their own ethics and their own beliefs.

And I hear you J, I would think that the man should not have employed pharmacists whom he didn't believe were capable of making their own ethical decisions.

Hmm...that could be misinterpreted. What I meant was, if he trusts a person enough to hire them as a pharmacist, he should trust that their own ethical decisions are just. And not put himself in the position of making those decisions for everyone. Does that make sense?

Yes, it does. Absolutely.

there is no conception.. the plan b prevents .. why cant people understand that?

I guess the heart of the issue is based on one's belief of when life begins. I tend to think of the unborn baby as a person, even though it is in fact no more than a cluster of cells, at least biologically. It wasn't really the idea that she used Plan B, but that she and her husband didn't seem to have any other type of plan. It's not called Plan A, after all.

My understanding is that this PREVENTS conception.

It says "it can prevent a fertilized egg from attaching to the uterus." But really, there is no way of knowing wether the egg was fertilized or not, which is why I'll sell it. But women should not be using this as a primary form of birth control. THAT is why it bothered me for that particular patient to fill it 3 times.

I hear you.

who was it on this site that said: BAMZS, gays and politcs guarantee a debate on popsugar...I think this one should be included.

i have taken it twice in 3 years bc i messed up my regular form of birth control and I wanted to be sure. i would much much much rather take a pill than have to get an abortion.

It's a very civil debate! More of a discussion, really.

oh and im a married woman btw. so i was married to my husband both times i took plan b

I guess I should have clarified. The person I'm talking about used it 3 times within less that 6 months. More like 3 or 4, I think.

3Sweeties...thanks for pointing out the difference between "prevents contraception" and "prevents implantation"

I don't want you to think I am judging you at all Sweet C!

Maybe debate is the wrong word

It's my understanding that "the pill" acts in much the same way. It primarily prevents ovulation, but it also helps stand guard at the cervix and also helps prevent implantation. Am I wrong?

no no no not at all3 sweeties. i wouldnt cast judge on anyone else reproductive choices so im sure you wouldnt either

yes 76. if u couldnt get ur hand on plan b.. taking a whole months worht of brith control pills would do the exact same thing as plan b

Oral contraceptive pills contain two synthetic female hormones (estrogen and progesterone).The combined effect of estrogen and progesterone prevent pregnancy by inhibiting the monthly release of the "egg" from the ovaries. The pills also thicken the cervical mucus and the lining of the uterus making it harder for sperm to enter the uterus.

OK good Sweet C! This is why it is good to be a woman of the 21st century. We not only have choices, but we can freely discuss them as well.

I agree.

ur very agreeable these days jenna lol

yes, I agree with that.

And if you can't get it from pharmacist. Go to planned parenthood. No judgements had there.

ladyinthestreet has a good point.. PP def passed no judgements when it comes to this sort of thing.... prob what the pharmacists should do too but i see both sides.

3Sweeties - what you said about "what if the woman was raped," - that's part of the reason why this is being offered OTC.

But you have to be 18 to get it OTC, right? I wonder why they picked that age because girls who are younger are also having sex and they're probaby the ones who would need this the most. And they may not want to bring their mom to the pharmacy to get it.

If the person is younger than 18, they need a prescription. Women under the age of 18 usually can get this medication and family planning, OB/GYN services for free at Federally Qualified Title X Clinics.

tra - so can they get these services without a parent if they're under 18?

Yes, and free of charge (at least in my state). The process is very confidential...more so than HIPAA.

My issue is that Plan B does not prevent fertilization. It prevents the implementation of the fertilized egg. That is a big difference from a BC pill that prevents an egg from being released so fertilization will not occurr. For someone who believes that "life" begins at fertilization, Plan B would go against those beliefs. If you take the stance that life begins at fertilization, then Plan B is the same as abortion because once fertilized = pregnant. Ending pregnancy = abortion. And as for the rape thing, speaking from personal experience, it was not an option. If I had become pregnant, that child could have blessed a family that was unable to conceive and was interested in adoption. No, it wouldn't have been the easy way out, but it would have been the strong way out. Difficult situation. I didn't really feel that this is a debate...we are all educated women and there is nothing wrong with sharing our beliefs. Hey, in fact, we all could learn something from each other, regardless of our beliefs.

~Bonnie~

Tra, question...maybe you know the answer...is Plan B federally funded at those clinics? Per legislation, abortion procedures, etc. cannot be federally funded, so is it that the Plan B is not legally viewed as an abortive? (I think that is the right word). Just curious.
~Bonnie~

I *think* the term is abortifacient. My understanding is that there is some controversy over whether this AND the pill are considered abortifacients. This AND the pill work using the SAME hormones. The primary objective is to prevent ovulation. But, they also function by thinning the lining of the uterus which prevents implantation.

But, the majority of physicians and medical professionals do not consider this or the pill to be abortifacients.

Hope that helps!

(I've been reading up since this morning.)

Yeah, Jennifer, that's it! Thanks! I guess the BC pill could cause an abortion if you took the whole pack AFTER you were already pregnant (i.e. have a fertilized egg). That would be why dr's tell pregnant women not take bc pills after they are pregnant. They may be the same hormones, but the dosage makes a big difference. Just like immunizations, they all contain a small part of the disease they are immunizing against, but it is such a low dose, it is not harmful. Pretty much anything in excess can be bad for you or for your baby if you're pregnant.

~Bonnie~

My friend took it once and bleed for like 3 months straight.

Bonnie - l don't agree with you that having your rapists' baby is the "strong" way out. Or did you just mean if you had sex by choice and then got pregant, having the baby and giving it up for adoption would be the "strong"way out? I'm hoping you meant the second one.

I think it's awesome that as women today, we have this option. There are way too many babies and children as it is who need homes - why add another one to the group?

Bonbonfay...

I am pretty sure that emergency hormonal contraception is not federally funded or state funded for that matter. I know for sure Medical Assistance and it's Managed Care Organizations (at least in my state) do not reimburse for these drugs. I'm almost positive that the federal grants do not as well.

In my statement above regarding Title X clinics, a clinic is funded for services (exams, pap smears, etc.) but not necessarily for all services that are provided.

Let me clarify - "strong" may not have been the right word, but it would have required a lot of strength to carry that child. Thankfully, I was not pregnant. But I would have given the child up for adoption to one of the families who has been waiting for 4 years to give a child a home. On average, that is how long someone has to wait to adopt a child...there are that many people out there who want to adopt a child. Try telling a couple who cannot have children that there are already "too many babies and children" in the world.

~Bonnie~

not for anything but who would want the child of a rapist?

I don't think there's a rapist gene. A baby is a baby.