Plan B

[Castro]

This was on 60 minutes tonight. Does this count as abortion, at least in Islam?

 

If there was a men's section, it probably belongs there.

 

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Why is the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) trying to regulate the sexual morality of American women? Barr Pharmaceuticals wants to be able to offer its morning-after contraceptive levonorgestrel, marketed as Plan B, over the counter rather than by prescription. Plan B consists of two high-dose contraceptive pills that either interfere with ovulation or fertilization, or prevent implantation of a fertilized egg. It has no effect once an egg is firmly implanted in the uterine wall.

 

On average, if 100 women have unprotected intercourse once during the second or third week of their cycle, eight will become pregnant. Taken within 72 hours after unprotected sex, Plan B reduces the average risk of pregnancy among users from about 8 percent to about 1 percent—an 89 percent reduction. The product, marketed only by prescription in the U.S. since July 1999, could be sold for around $30 per dose over the counter.

 

On December 16, 2003, a joint panel of the FDA's Reproductive Health Drugs Advisory Committee and Non-prescription Drugs Advisory Committee voted 23 to 4 to recommend that the FDA approve the application to make Plan B available over the counter. At the hearing proponents and opponents weighed in. One particularly interesting comment was made by Jennifer Taylor of the anti-abortion Human Life International. She declared that women who use emergency contraception show an "inability to control themselves in sexual situations."

 

One of the four panel members voting "no" was controversial pro-life Kentucky obstetrician/gynecologist Dr. W. David Hager. Dr. Hager refuses to prescribe contraceptives to unmarried women and recommends that women with premenstrual syndrome read Scripture and pray. Hager is also the author of As Jesus Cared for Women: Restoring Women Then and Now.

 

In February 2004, 49 Republican members of Congress signed a letter to President Bush urging that Plan B's prescription-only status be maintained because wider use could result in more sexual promiscuity and venereal disease.

 

On May 6, 2004, the FDA rejected the advice of its scientific advisory boards and refused to approve the over-the-counter sale of Plan B. The FDA claimed Plan B had not been tested in enough adolescent females to prove that it's safe for them to use. However, proponents saw the FDA's assertions as a political move to appease the Bush administration's pro-life allies.

 

After all, agency staffers noted that this was the first time this issue had ever been raised. "The agency has not [previously] distinguished the safety and efficacy of Plan B and other forms of hormonal contraception among different ages of women of childbearing potential, and I am not aware of any compelling scientific reason for such a distinction in this case," wrote John Jenkins, director of the FDA's Office of New Drugs, in an internal memo leaked to The Washington Post.

 

So Barr Pharmaceuticals is being forced to jump through further hoops to try to get Plan B approved for sale without a prescription. Now the company has proposed an arrangement in which Plan B would be available to women over age 16 without a prescription behind the counter. That is, a woman would have to ask a pharmacist to hand her a package of the pills before she could buy them. (Women under 16 would require a prescription.) The FDA is expected to rule on this new proposal from Barr later this month.

 

A new study published last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that women who had been supplied with Plan B beforehand were twice as likely to use it as those who had access to it only through clinics. Also, women who had Plan B at home were no more likely to engage in unprotected sex than those whose access was restricted. Interestingly, the study found "women in the pharmacy access and advance provision groups did not experience a significant reduction in pregnancy rate." This undercuts the hope of Plan B proponents that wider use of the pills could cut in half the nation's 3 million unintended pregnancies each year and in turn prevent hundreds of thousands of abortions.

 

Never mind if both the hopes and the fears of how women will actually use Plan B are exaggerated—those who want easy access to it should be able to have it. And even if the availability of Plan B did encourage women to have more unprotected sex, why is that any business of FDA regulators? Sure, having sex with lots of partners without using condoms increases the chances of being infected with venereal diseases and becoming pregnant. But that's the woman's and her partners' lookout, not that of the bluenoses who are apparently running the FDA.

 

The FDA is supposed to approve drugs that are safe and effective for their indication—in this case preventing unintended pregnancies after unprotected sex. Plan B clearly does this. If the FDA wants to prevent or cure sexually transmitted diseases, then it should worry about approving vaccines and drugs for that purpose. In the meantime, as far as the available scientific evidence goes, there is no reason why Plan B shouldn't be on drugstore shelves right next to the Trojan and Durex displays.

 

Source

[SeeKer]

Plan B is a drug just like any other drug behind/over the counter. That it is used as a preventative measure for unwanted pregnancy should not be FDA's place to decide. Condoms/spermicides/female condoms are all methods of prevention of pregnancy over the counter. Plan B should be available right next to them.

 

I dispensed Plan B to a girl once who had a pierced navel and hot pants. She didn't look a day above 18 but she found a way to get the medicine through doctor. How would this girl take care of a kid if she ended up pregnant? She might get a hack job abortion behind the dumpster/give birth to the child and dump him/her in the dumpster/give birth to the child and keep it making his/her life horrible cause she can't provide the care for it. I am sorry but there are enough children dying after they draw their first breath.

 

Plan B is not abortion because its only taken within 72 hours after unprotected sex. You can't even find out if you are pregnant within that amount of time so I don't think a woman, who decided to have unprotected sex to begin with, is "irresponsible" by taking the initiative of not making others (child) suffer for her "dumb" mistake.

 

FDA should butt out and do the job that is set out for them; making sure that drugs are safe and advertised correctly. No one asked them to police the morals of the drug users.

 

Oi these are my "liberal" views so let me prepare a proper rope with a noose

[Castro]

^ Thanks for the expert description of Plan B.

 

Originally posted by SeeKer:

I dispensed Plan B to a girl once who had a pierced navel and hot pants.

As a muslim, did you find this questionable in any way?

Originally posted by SeeKer:

Plan B is not abortion because its only taken within 72 hours after unprotected sex. You can't even find out if you are pregnant within that amount of time so I don't think a woman who decided to have unprotected sex to begin with,is "irresponsible" by taking the initiative of not making others(child) suffer for her "dumb" mistake.

Interesting, so if it's just an egg and a sperm, it's not abortion.

 

P.S. Your 'liberal' views are welcome and appreciated on SOL.

[SeeKer]

Castro there are many things as a muslim I do that does not correspond with Islamic ethics. What you are trying to liken to my tale is a bartender,a muslim, serving drinks to a drunk? I am sorry but if I thought that about the drugs I dispensed I would have quit my job before I started it. A doctor prescribes contraceptives, should he quit his job because contraception is "iffy" issue in Islam? A clerk who sells a person a pack of condoms should quit because they are inadvertently "encouraging" sexual intercourse? My ethics, my choice sxb but you draw your own conclusions.

 

As for if it is considered abortion let me clear it up for you (My views and the Islamic one)

 

My view :It takes 6 days for the "fertilized" egg to migrate down the fallopian tube and a further 6 days for it to attach to the uterian wall. Another thing is according to the American Pregnancy Association 50-75% of women who haven't realized they are pregnant lose their babies before their next menstrual cycle begins. Odds of that "egg + sperm" actually being a child are astronomical in my book. That we are talking about people who already are irresponsible enough to have unprotected sex couples the fact that I do think Plan B should be an over the counter item. If you are going to be a farmer you might as well take all the tools with you to the garden, na mean

 

Islamic View :

The Council of Senior Scholars issued the following statement:

 

1 – It is not permissible to abort a pregnancy at any stage unless there is a legitimate reason, and within very precise limits.

 

2 – If the pregnancy is in the first stage, which is a period of forty days, and aborting it serves a legitimate purpose or will ward off harm, then it is permissible to abort it. But aborting it at this stage for fear of the difficulty of raising children or of being unable to bear the costs of maintaining and educating them, or for fear for their future or because the couple feel that they have enough children – this is not permissible.

 

3 – It is not permissible to abort a pregnancy when it is an ‘alaqah (clot) or mudghah (chewed lump of flesh) (which are the second and third periods of forty days each) until a trustworthy medical committee has decided that continuing the pregnancy poses a threat to the mother’s wellbeing, in that there is the fear that she will die if the pregnancy continues. It is permissible to abort it once all means of warding off that danger have been exhausted.

 

4 – After the third stage, and after four months have passed, it is not permissible to abort the pregnancy unless a group of trustworthy medical specialists decide that keeping the foetus in his mother’s womb will cause her death, and that should only be done after all means of keeping the foetus alive have been exhausted. A concession is made allowing abortion in this case so as to ward off the greater of two evils and to serve the greater of two interests.

 

Islam Q and A

 

Hope it helps

[x_quizit]

I agree with seeker, Plan B isn't a pill to abort, merely another form of contraceptive, just like the shot, condom, birth control, etc.

It just stops the egg from having a fling with the sperm, hence dancing to their own tune to produce their indiscretion.

[Castro]

^ So if plan B is a contraceptive, then why would conservatives be against it? Medical professionals actually refer to it as "emergency" contraception. It prevents a pregnancy, it does not end it. Which should be kosher, no?

 

Sadly, this may be another instance of a woman's alleged promiscuity being combatted. If that is the case, it would be ironic that those who cry murder over abortions would be the same ones who are fighting such a proven and preventative measure.

[x_quizit]

Conservatives (fundamental christians mostly) operate with the view that all women are born sinners, therefore anything she does that may stop her from getting pregnant would naturally be assumed as abortion. Its an "emergency" contraceptive because its the last resort, as there was no condom used or pills taken. Its the last sure way to stop the sperm from fertilizing the egg, and if there is that option available, why deny them that right?

[Castro]

^ I was thinking conservative muslims as well. Besides the dogmatic differences, it's surprising how similar the two groups are. Specially when it comes to women and sex.

[x_quizit]

They are both highly controlling and suspicious of women in general. Conservative muslims also use their culture most often than islam, which colors their reason, hence culture dictates women needs to be oppressed and doesn't possess the mental capacity to distinguish right from wrong. Thats where men come in, our very own heros who can do all for us. Aren't we just lucky? :rolleyes:

[Baluug]

As Seeker posted about the view of Islamic scholars on abortion, there are likewise limited circumstances in which birth control is permissible in Islam(I don't know the exact conditions, but I know there are conditions).

 

This is obviously kind of a grey area in which Allah SWT knows best if the "sperm + egg" is an actual baby or not. So as Muslims, we should follow those precautions set out by the scholars. As for kafirs, like the girl Seeker mentioned, if she wants this Plan B thing, ahe'll get it from someone else if a Muslim pharmacist doesn't give it to her, and that's too bad, because the kid may very well grow up to be among the best people on Earth. But we should at least try to talk them out of it.

 

Just because the baby is "unplanned" or "unwanted" doesn't give us the right to practice abortion simply because we don't want it. There are millions of "unplanned and unwanted" children and adults in this world and they're getting along fine. Nobody on this planet is free from problems, so they need to get over it just the rest of us have to.Anyways, I'm rambling......

[Cara.]

Castro,

 

So if plan B is a contraceptive, then why would conservatives be against it?

Many conservatives are against contraceptives. The Catholic Church still frowns on birth control, and actually recently claimed that condoms don't protect against STDs, a ridiculously irresponsible claim in light of HIV/AIDS.

 

The truth is that those against Plan B don't give a fig about babies. If they did, they would throw all their support behind something that reduces the need for abortions.

[Castro]

I'm waiting for it to go OTC. I've no problem with contraception. Avoiding pregnancy is not un-Islamic. It can't be. Plan be helps with that. Plan B is good.

[SeeKer]

^^^ This is an interesting twist I would have to say.

 

Liibaan:On contraception Islam is clear you can use it to widen the gap between your children and if pregnancy is life threatening to the mother. Allahu Ya3lam those are the only cases I have heard birth control is ok to use.

 

The other thing is don't confuse Plan B (Emergency Contraceptive) with Mifepristone (Abortion drug).It is important to understand that EC does not terminate a pregnancy. Pregnancy is generally defined, in the medical field anyway,as implantation and not fertilization. EC works before implantation and does not work after a woman is pregnant. If a woman is already pregnant when she takes EC, there is no effect on the fetus or the woman.

 

Jeez Louise I sound like a CE on Plan B

[Socod_badne]

What happened to plan A or am I missing something?

[-Serenity-]

Plan B aborts the little guys' mission .... not the baby.