Governor Applauds FDA Decision on Plan B

Governor Applauds FDA Decision on Plan B

August 24, 2006

AUGUSTA - Governor John Baldacci today applauded the decision of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to access the morning-after pill without a prescription for women 18 and older.

"This is an important victory for American women," said Governor Baldacci. "While Washington stalled, I signed a law two years ago making Maine the sixth state to provide emergency contraception directly to women in pharmacies. This overdue decision by the FDA is real progress for the advancement of reproductive rights for millions of American women, promoting women's health, and help preventing unintended pregnancies."

In March 2004, Governor Baldacci signed the bill LD 1152, allowing pharmacists in the state to dispense emergency contraception to women without a doctor's prescription. The Governor noted at that time that the new law marked another milepost in the advancement of reproductive rights for women in Maine.

"Too often the Bush Administration has put ideology before science. Though it took far too long for the FDA to end this long delay in approving Plan B, I welcome Acting FDA Commissioner Dr. von Eschenbach's decision to finally allow this emergency contraception to be accessed over-the-counter to women across the country.

"I hope that this marks a different trend in regulatory decisions by this Administration and that in the future they will make sure to put the health of the American people before politics."

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