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Drug Agency Lowers Age For Next-Day Birth Control [W:297]

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1. I know what is about to move up to #1 on the shoplifters' lists and

2. I am beyond trying to make sense of it. I have to practically give a rectal DNA sample to get allergy medicine but I can walk in to pick up people's prescription pain meds for them at the pharmacy and never have to show ID.
 
Arbo said:
Yeah, not sure it makes much sense, but the FDA is full of nonsense.
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Why doesn't it make sense? You don't need a doctor to buy tylenol. On what medical basis do you make this statement?

Fisher said:
1. I know what is about to move up to #1 on the shoplifters' lists and

2. I am beyond trying to make sense of it. I have to practically give a rectal DNA sample to get allergy medicine but I can walk in to pick up people's prescription pain meds for them at the pharmacy and never have to show ID.
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... why on earth would people shoplift this product, of all things? It's not like there's going to be a black market for morning after pills.
 
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Deuce said:
Why doesn't it make sense? You don't need a doctor to buy tylenol.
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I think there is a HUGE difference between tylenol and the morning after pill, don't you?
 
Arbo said:
I think there is a HUGE difference between tylenol and the morning after pill, don't you?
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Emotionally or medically?
 
Arbo said:
When you have a serious question, let me know.
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It is a serious question. Do you perceive this "huge difference" because it's birth control or because of some sort of medical reason to suspect the product is more dangerous to young people?

Because it isn't. It's just as easy to use and just as safe when used properly. So on what basis do you make this "HUGE DIFFERENCE" statement other than your emotional aversion to young people having sex?

But if you aren't willing to answer the question...
 
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MaggieD said:
I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I think it's a good thing that the morning-after pill is readily available. On the other, I think giving 15-year-olds access to this medication without their parents' knowledge isn't the right thing to do. Damned if you do...damned if you don't.
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I don't support giving parents that authority. My own parents were pro-life and I'm pro-choice. I wasn't sexually active as a teenager, but if I was and needed my parents' permission to get the morning after pill, I can guarantee you they'd say no. Same goes for an abortion. Besides which, my parents finding out I had pre-marital sex would lead to great shame and potential disownment. My reproductive status is none of their business.

If they're mature enough to be having sex and maybe get pregnant, then they're mature enough to use the morning after pill.

My only concern is the lack of research about this pill for girls at age 15. But the FDA has been wreckless in recent years, so they'll just let the public experiment until something goes wrong and then modify the drug policy, as usual.
 
Northern Light said:
I don't support giving parents that authority. My own parents were pro-life and I'm pro-choice. I wasn't sexually active as a teenager, but if I was and needed my parents' permission to get the morning after pill, I can guarantee you they'd say no. Same goes for an abortion. Besides which, my parents finding out I had pre-marital sex would lead to great shame and potential disownment. My reproductive status is none of their business.

If they're mature enough to be having sex and maybe get pregnant, then they're mature enough to use the morning after pill.

My only concern is the lack of research about this pill for girls at age 15. But the FDA has been wreckless in recent years, so they'll just let the public experiment until something goes wrong and then modify the drug policy, as usual.
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There is plenty of evidence that it is safe for young women. It's been available to teens in Europe for years. No problems found.
 
Northern Light said:
I don't support giving parents that authority. My own parents were pro-life and I'm pro-choice. I wasn't sexually active as a teenager, but if I was and needed my parents' permission to get the morning after pill, I can guarantee you they'd say no. Same goes for an abortion. Besides which, my parents finding out I had pre-marital sex would lead to great shame and potential disownment. My reproductive status is none of their business.

If they're mature enough to be having sex and maybe get pregnant, then they're mature enough to use the morning after pill.

My only concern is the lack of research about this pill for girls at age 15. But the FDA has been wreckless in recent years, so they'll just let the public experiment until something goes wrong and then modify the drug policy, as usual.
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If only we could license parents. I sure do understand what you're saying.

I'm coming from the position that my 15-year-old daughter is still under my control and is completely and totally my responsibility unless or until she becomes emancipated.

I guess I'd like to be able to talk to her about her decision -- and the decisions that led up to her being in that particular position -- rather than have it all happen behind my back.

I do understand where you're coming from, though, which is why I'm torn.
 
sangha said:
There is plenty of evidence that it is safe for young women. It's been available to teens in Europe for years. No problems found.
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Yeah, I wouldn't be particularly concerned about the morning-after pill. Actually, I think women probably have much more to worry about re consistent use of birth control pills. Many side effects there.
 
MaggieD said:
I'm coming from the position that my 15-year-old daughter is still under my control and is completely and totally my responsibility unless or until she becomes emancipated.

I guess I'd like to be able to talk to her about her decision -- and the decisions that led up to her being in that particular position -- rather than have it all happen behind my back.
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All well said. My son is 15, daughter 13, and I'd like to think we have been pretty open, so they'd come to us first. But either way, the decision sort of fly's in the face of parents in many ways. Hell, if they don't go to school at 15 the parent is held responsible. I know that some, maybe many, kids 'do it' at that age, but the mental capacity to understand the risks and potential outcomes is not fully there, I don't care what any 'doctor' says to the contrary.
 
MaggieD said:
If only we could license parents. I sure do understand what you're saying.

I'm coming from the position that my 15-year-old daughter is still under my control and is completely and totally my responsibility unless or until she becomes emancipated.

I guess I'd like to be able to talk to her about her decision -- and the decisions that led up to her being in that particular position -- rather than have it all happen behind my back.

I do understand where you're coming from, though, which is why I'm torn.
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I get it, I really do. We want what's best for our children. We see them as precious and vulnerable. But as teenagers they tend to see themselves as invincible, and want to test the waters of independence.

My issue is this. We don't really have totally control over our kids once they reach a certain age. I mean, on paper we do. But they're going to do things against our will. One of those things could be having sex and maybe getting pregnant. If a young woman has to wait for her mother's permission to get the morning after pill, the fertilized egg could implant and then it will be abortion territory.

If a 15 year old even has the wisdom to know she should seek the morning after pill, then she would spare her parents a lot of agony by quietly dealing with. If she needs an abortion then she would definitely need parental permission, and that's when the can of worms really gets opened, whether her parents say yes or not.
 
All of my kids are over 18 now. My gut reply is when my kid were under 18 I made ALL the decisions. Abortion is a BIG decision.

On the other hand, I know a lot of parents would not go out of their way to do the right thing for a 15 year old kid and might be more bent on punishment. I guess I really believe kids should not be able to buy any pills without parents approval.
 
Northern Light said:
I don't support giving parents that authority. My own parents were pro-life and I'm pro-choice. I wasn't sexually active as a teenager, but if I was and needed my parents' permission to get the morning after pill, I can guarantee you they'd say no. Same goes for an abortion. Besides which, my parents finding out I had pre-marital sex would lead to great shame and potential disownment. My reproductive status is none of their business.

If they're mature enough to be having sex and maybe get pregnant, then they're mature enough to use the morning after pill.

My only concern is the lack of research about this pill for girls at age 15. But the FDA has been wreckless in recent years, so they'll just let the public experiment until something goes wrong and then modify the drug policy, as usual.
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Question is, are they mentally mature enough to be having sex? I hope we aren't hurting the next generation by assuming they are mentally mature enough.
 
mak2 said:
Abortion is a BIG decision.
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There's part of the rub.

Some people obviously view "the morning after pill" as a form of "abortion".


Also, if (and obviously they are) 15 year olds are having unprotected sex - the "morning after pill" should be the least of any parents worries.

There's far more dangerous things lurking in the shadows than what that one pill may do.
 
MaggieD said:
I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I think it's a good thing that the morning-after pill is readily available. On the other, I think giving 15-year-olds access to this medication without their parents' knowledge isn't the right thing to do. Damned if you do...damned if you don't.
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Like it or not 15 year olds are sexual active.. they always have been and they always will be. Rather have them protected than not right?
 
PeteEU said:
Like it or not 15 year olds are sexual active.. they always have been and they always will be. Rather have them protected than not right?
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Don't you think the parents or some older responsible adult should be made aware so that they can have a talk with this child before giving her access to what should probably be a prescription drug without any kind of monitoring at all?
 
MaggieD said:
I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I think it's a good thing that the morning-after pill is readily available. On the other, I think giving 15-year-olds access to this medication without their parents' knowledge isn't the right thing to do. Damned if you do...damned if you don't.
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I couldn't agree more. People need to remember that parents are responsible for their children. They also seem to forget that there are other aspects about sex besides pregnancy that can be damaging to a young person. I think there are a lot of promiscuous teens out there who have the wrong idea about sex and intimacy and who probably need some kind of guidance and advice. Making this pill available to them without any adult supervision makes it so that children can continue to have sex even after a suspected or confirmed pregnancy and no one would be the wiser.
 
ChrisL said:
Don't you think the parents or some older responsible adult should be made aware so that they can have a talk with this child before giving her access to what should probably be a prescription drug without any kind of monitoring at all?
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It's just best for any parent to assume their "sexually mature" child is either already "active", or going to be very soon.

Have any and all talks with them staring at puberty and don't let any opportunity pass to revisit such conversations with them.

If you wait until they come to you about a morning after pill - you've really fornicated up as a parent.
 
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