After America spent eight years moving socially to the right under former President George W. Bush, the liberal backlash continues. The ruling from a federal judge that Plan B, the ‘morning after pill,’ can be sold without a prescription to 17-year-olds is a victory for women’s rights. Conservative ideology should not be dictating how women determine what is right for their bodies.’
However, this decision raises the question, why not offer Plan B to 16-year-olds without a prescription as well? Judge Edward Korman stated in his ruling that there was ‘nearly uniform agreement among FDA scientific review staff that women of all ages could use Plan B without a prescription safely and effectively.’ Since Korman seems to think there is no medical reason to deny Plan B to young women, then it is clear morals and politics were part of his decision to draw the line at 17 and not younger.
The issue of ‘when life truly begins’ is something that Americans may never agree upon, making it difficult to legislate regarding birth control and abortion. But if there is to be any legal precedent in determining at what age women should be able to obtain the ‘morning after pill’ without any kind of permission, perhaps age of consent laws would be most appropriate. If some states are trusting 16-year-olds to make the decision to have sex with their partners, then those states should also be trusting young women to use legal means to deal with the consequences of those actions without having to get permission to buy Plan B. Age of consent laws may be ineffective in practice, but when used as a legal guide, they point out the ridiculousness of states that believe teenagers are mature enough to consent to sex at 16, yet still too young to make their own decisions about birth control.
Even with this ruling expanding access to emergency contraception, however, Plan B must live up to its name and remain an option for only after others have failed. The 89 percent effectiveness of Plan B is not as effective as the pill or condom usage.’
This ruling surely does not represent the end of the culture war over what a woman can do to her own body, but it is an encouraging step in the right direction.
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