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Plan B - Pissing in the Pool
Aug. 24th, 2006 11:58 amMy friends list is rejoicing that the FDA has approved Plan B for over-the-counter sales as long as it's in stock, the pharmacist doesn't play stupid and/or judgemental when asked for it, and the female in question can prove her age.
I'm sorry, but I can't join in the jubilation. Not until I can walk into the store and actually get some, and those days are NOT here yet.
It hasn't been that long since we all threw our hats in the air over Gardasil being approved, and what did the anti-woman machine instantly do? Instantly start the rear-guard action of saying that they're all in support, that they're all for women's health... but somehow women's health just doesn't seem to encompass women being able to get their hands on anything that would take the original sin out of sexuality. The same has been true about Plan B, even though it's already been proven that access to Plan B does not mean an increase in risky sexual behavior. Robbed of the ability to wail about whorish women, they've slipped back to the standby of "protecting" us, this time claiming that Plan B will hurt "girls" and thus cannot be made available under the age of 18.
I'm idly wondering how many pharmacists are going to look at 35-year-old women and claim they can't prove their age. I'm not-so-idly wondering if all the fake IDs that let underage girls drink aren't going to be equally effective when used in CVS or Dekert - c'mon, people, did anyone really believe that an age barrier would stop anyone?
I wrote about this before: Approved Doesn't Mean Available. In this case, I'd say that "available doesn't mean obtainable." In order to get Plan B, you'd still have to talk to a pharmacist - who may or may not believe that Plan B = "chemical abortion" of a "baby." They may or may not work in a state where it is permissable for the pharmacist to override the wishes of the patient, the doctor, and even whole clinics for not being in line with the pharmacist's morality. (And remember, "pharmacists' rights" bills are showing up on a lot of state referendums, right next to the gay marriage clauses.)
It's not time to start celebrating. Not when Plan B has already been legal for a while - and not only are some pharmacists still refusing to dispense it in the first place, but we've got the added wrinkle of pharmacists refusing to issue refills because women who need more than one dose of emergency birth control are "irresponsible."
People, we have not won a war today. We haven't even won a battle. We won a skirmish, and the machinery to make the victory pyrrhic is already at full steam.
I'm sorry, but I can't join in the jubilation. Not until I can walk into the store and actually get some, and those days are NOT here yet.
It hasn't been that long since we all threw our hats in the air over Gardasil being approved, and what did the anti-woman machine instantly do? Instantly start the rear-guard action of saying that they're all in support, that they're all for women's health... but somehow women's health just doesn't seem to encompass women being able to get their hands on anything that would take the original sin out of sexuality. The same has been true about Plan B, even though it's already been proven that access to Plan B does not mean an increase in risky sexual behavior. Robbed of the ability to wail about whorish women, they've slipped back to the standby of "protecting" us, this time claiming that Plan B will hurt "girls" and thus cannot be made available under the age of 18.
I'm idly wondering how many pharmacists are going to look at 35-year-old women and claim they can't prove their age. I'm not-so-idly wondering if all the fake IDs that let underage girls drink aren't going to be equally effective when used in CVS or Dekert - c'mon, people, did anyone really believe that an age barrier would stop anyone?
I wrote about this before: Approved Doesn't Mean Available. In this case, I'd say that "available doesn't mean obtainable." In order to get Plan B, you'd still have to talk to a pharmacist - who may or may not believe that Plan B = "chemical abortion" of a "baby." They may or may not work in a state where it is permissable for the pharmacist to override the wishes of the patient, the doctor, and even whole clinics for not being in line with the pharmacist's morality. (And remember, "pharmacists' rights" bills are showing up on a lot of state referendums, right next to the gay marriage clauses.)
It's not time to start celebrating. Not when Plan B has already been legal for a while - and not only are some pharmacists still refusing to dispense it in the first place, but we've got the added wrinkle of pharmacists refusing to issue refills because women who need more than one dose of emergency birth control are "irresponsible."
People, we have not won a war today. We haven't even won a battle. We won a skirmish, and the machinery to make the victory pyrrhic is already at full steam.
