Plan B moves, but behind the counter

Plan B emergency contraception will be available to women over 18 without prescription by the end of the year — finally and, perhaps, sometimes only technically.

After a three-year battle with solid science obscured by ideological haze, the Food and Drug Administration ruled women could buy the emergency contraceptive without a prescription if they show identification proving they are at least 18 years of age. Girls 16 and 17 years old can get the drug with a doctor's prescription — even though the FDA's advisory committee found no basis for the age restriction. The ruling represents progress, but the conditions still have the potential to limit on-demand access because the drug can be purchased only at a pharmacy when the pharmacist is on duty. Under Washington law, about 20 percent of Washington's 5,000 pharmacists have additional training and authority to issue prescriptions for Plan B, so access will be increased for most adult women.

Still, by keeping the drug behind the counter, the restriction could run up against the proclivities of a few pharmacists who want to meddle in the contraceptive choices of women.

Last week, the Washington state Board of Pharmacy agreed to investigate the complaints of nine women who claim they were denied access to the Plan B drug at four Olympia-area pharmacies even though they had prescriptions. The board has 170 days to complete the probe.

The board stirred controversy when it first embraced rules to permit pharmacists to opt out of filling prescriptions they objected to on moral grounds, and then delayed implementation of the rules. The board will consider the matter again Aug. 31.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., played a role in breaking the FDA logjam when she joined Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., in putting a hold on the nomination of acting FDA administrator Andrew von Eschenbach until a Plan B decision was made. They lifted the hold last week, making his confirmation likely.

Murray is right to encourage FDA to rethink the age restrictions; they are not supported by the science. Though Plan B prevents unwanted pregnancies, which often lead to abortions, opponents argued easier access would promote promiscuity.

For now, women's expanded access to safe and effective emergency contraception is something to be celebrated.