Obama Comes To His Senses On Plan B

A couple of months ago, U.S. District Judge Edward R. Korman ordered the government to approve the over-the-counter sale of the Plan B contraceptive (commonly called the "morning after pill") for all women, regardless of age, with no prescription requirement. The judge said that not doing this deprived "the overwhelming majority of women of their right to obtain contraceptives without unjustified and burdensome restrictions".

This was not an unreasonable decision. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) had already declared their support for this view, saying the drug was safe for women of all ages -- and that the threat of an unwanted pregnancy posed a far greater threat to a woman's health than the contraceptive did. In fact, ACOG recommended that all oral contraceptives be made available for over-the-counter sale, without prescription. But the Obama administration didn't have the common sense of ACOG or the political courage displayed by Judge Korman.

The Obama administration instituted a halfway measure (approving over-the-counter sales for women age 16 or older), and appealed the judge's order. Obama said the idea that his daughters could buy the drug made him "uncomfortable". Of course, this middle road made no one happy (except maybe a few die-hard Democrats who support the president no matter what he does). Liberals didn't think the Obama administration had gone far enough, and conservatives thought he had gone too far. It left the president with few friends on either side of the political spectrum on this issue.

And recently, the Obama administration got some more bad news. They learned that the appeals court had refused to stay the judge's order pending the outcome of the appeal -- which meant the appeals court was not likely to rule in favor of the president's position.

So, last Monday the Obama administration reversed its position -- withdrawing the appeal, and sending Judge Korman a letter saying the government would abide by his ruling. Administration spokesmen said the company that makes the Plan B contraceptive had been asked to file an application requesting no age or sales restrictions to the FDA, and said the FDA "will approve it without delay".

This was the right move. Now they need to go further, and approve the over-the-counter sale of all oral contraceptives without age restrictions. I'm sure that would anger most right-wingers, but women's health and rights are more important than keeping the right-wingers happy.