My Opinion: I Address This Issue from a Medical Background

Yesterday was one of the saddest days I can remember. Because I now know I cannot trust my government to care for my daughters and my granddaughter. I cannot trust the SCOTUS. It’s not just about abortion, it’s about treating women as lesser citizens. It’s about putting their mental and physical health in jeopardy, if they are raped, or have an ectopic pregnancy. It’s about being anti-science and acting like this decision was invoked by some spiritual need. We are HUMAN beings. Not angels. When we need medical care, We Need It!! And some old men on the court, and some rich young woman, have no right to stomp on that need.

CONTRACEPTION

Many members of the radical right don’t even approve of contraception!! Instead, all women are to be saints, bear large numbers of children, and simply give give give; they might not have a life of their own; their health might be damaged; they might die young or turn to alcohol and drugs to get through the days. That’s just too bad. They have wombs and thus they are to make babies. 

But there have been women for centuries who realized that NO–that’s not my calling, and they wrote poetry and novels, practiced the arts of finding herbs and plants to heal the body, used their creative powers to leave behind art, literature and science. And for some, they even became part of the government that ruled their kingdoms, their countries. Bravo, Women. And Bravo Herbalists, Midwives, Crones and Witches. Call them what you will, they were working to help and protect women. They were concerned about menstruation, pain, rape and always pregnancy: those that went right and those that led to a woman’s death. 

SO, ABOUT PROTECTION

Many members of the radical right don’t approve or more correctly don’t understand what PLAN B is. Pharmacists on the radical right have refused to fill scripts for Plan B when a patient presents and needs help. PLAN B IS NOT an abortifactant. It does not stop a pregnancy that has already begun. It stops a pregnancy from beginning. It is a very large dose of hormones like the birth control pill. (Levonorgestrel morning-after pills, like Plan B, are arguably the most well-known emergency contraceptives. Other options include the Ella pill and the copper intrauterine device, more widely known as an IUD.)

But radical ideas often don’t allow wiggle room; no questions are asked. Ignorance is bliss. I once encountered a pharmacist who believed that PLAN B was an abortifactant. Do your homework, Buddy, before you go embarrassing a stressed out woman at the counter and refusing to fill her script. Or change jobs. You shouldn’t be working in the healthcare field if you don’t want to deliver care.

The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) is the site to go to for information about women’s health, birth control, pregnancy and abortion. https://www.acog.org/advocacy/facts-are-important/abortion-is-healthcare

Doctors from ACOG’s Committee on Health Care for Underserved Women, have spoken to the critical need for all women of reproductive age to have unimpeded access to emergency contraception, an essential treatment method for protecting and safeguarding their reproductive health. It’s been estimated that greater access to Emergency Contraception (EC) could cut unintended pregnancy and abortion rates in half. Statistics show that nearly half (49%) of the more than 6 million pregnancies that occur each year are unplanned. Family planning is an important issue and EC is an excellent contraceptive option for millions of women who want to prevent an unintended pregnancy.

Emergency contraception, also called the morning-after pill, is a higher dosage of the same hormones found in ordinary birth control pills. It is highly effective in reducing a woman’s chance of pregnancy after a contraceptive failure or unprotected sex. This can include rape. If taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex, EC prevents up to 89% of pregnancies; it is most effective if taken within 24 hours.

According to ACOG, over half (53%) of the women who have unplanned pregnancies are using some method of contraception. “Accidents happen. (a condom breaks, you forgot your diaphragm). No form of contraception offers women 100% protection,” noted Dr. Michael T. Mennuti. “By getting women to ask about emergency contraception and by ob-gyns giving them an advance prescription for it, we hope to make EC a forethought, not an afterthought. We want women to be prepared-well before a contraceptive failure or unprotected sex occurs. Afterward may be too late.”

The Top 5 Questions Asked About Emergency Contraception

There are the two types of pills: Ulipristal pills. These require a prescription. … Some research suggests that morning–after pills may be less effective if you are overweight or obese. … Yes, it’s safe to use morning–after pills (both progestin-only pills and ulipristal pills) multiple times in one menstrual cycle.

Want to be prepared, or to offer information to someone you know–go here to the Planned Parenthood site for information about the morning after pill. https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/morning-after-pill-emergency-contraception/which-kind-emergency-contraception-should-i-use

“The scientific evidence and medical consensus supporting non-prescription sales of emergency contraception is unparalleled in FDA history,” says Dr. Dickerson reiterating ACOG’s support for making EC (Emergency Contraception)  available directly to women over the counter. “The FDA’s failure to act amounts to a quintessential shell game, in which women are the losers. Not granting national OTC status to Plan B® goes against their mission of promoting public health and welfare. EC’s safety and efficacy are backed by decades of research and are not debatable,” she added. “As champions of women’s health, ACOG endorses non-prescription sales of emergency contraception.”

Studies also show that women are more likely to use EC if it is readily available. It is estimated that making EC widely available OTC (over the counter) has the potential to prevent at least half of unintended pregnancies in the US (or about 3 million pregnancies annually) and reduce the number of abortions in the US by 50%.

For more information, go here: https://www.acog.org/advocacy/facts-are-important/abortion-is-healthcare

Facebook Twitter LinkedInPinterest