The Feb. 25 article "Plans for Over-the-counter Contraception Stall" on emergency post-coital contraception by Tracy Hinman incorrectly stated: "According to (Amy) White, the Food and Drug Administration voted 23 to four for postponing their decision on the national availability of over-the-counter morning-after pills."
No. A panel of FDA experts recommended that Plan B be available over-the-counter. The 90-day postponement was imposed by the executive branch of the FDA, as stated in a phone conversation with Amy White on Feb. 26, 2004.
Emergency post-coital contraception is a safeguard option for women and girls to prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus within 72 hours after sexual contact, thereby preventing impregnation.
Women and girls have a right to full availability of and access to emergency post-coital contraception whether or not contraception was used. If a woman or girl did not use contraception, they would be in even greater need for the extra safeguard of post-coital contraception.
If he did not use or if he broke the condom, she needs to be on heavy anti-HIV medicine immediately even though a positive HIV test result might not show up for months later. Penile/seminal fluid contact is also the primary means that many males are infecting many females with sexually transmitted diseases including HIV and HPV (human papilloma virus) as a cause of cervical cancer.
Males are at least four times more likely to infect a female with HIV by penetration and ejaculation than a female is to infect a male who penetrates and ejaculates into her. If no contraception was properly used or/and if there is a risk of pregnancy or HIV, what he did is even more likely to have been a sexual assault.
In the long term and immediate context, many males often use: force, threat of force, forceful infringement, verbal coercion (abuse or commands), situational coercion (escape difficult), coercion of money/goods/gifts/drugs/food, blackmail, hierarchy of age, status, authority and multiple assailants.
If a female is under the influence of a drug, what he did to her is automatically sexual assault, and he is responsible. Females are often in far greater harm if they try to resist and are often intimidated and terrorized by males, so resistance might not always be the strongest possible response.
Male impregnation of females is the fault of the male who impregnated the female. Male infection of females is the fault of the male who infected the female. The male knew he was exposing her to risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases and did what he wanted. In addition to that, he did not have a vasectomy, wear a condom or broke the condom. That is reckless endangerment, negligent women's laughter, attempted murder and femicide. Plan B can prevent impregnation if taken within 72 hours or less after the "sexual contact."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
