NY Passes Morning-After Pill Without Prescription

The New York Senate gave final legislative approval Wednesday to provide easy access to the morning-after pill through pharmacists, midwives and nurses despite strong opposition by lawmakers who likened the emergency contraception to abortion.The measure would allow girls and women to obtain the medication without a physician's visit or prescription and without parental consent regardless of the patient's age. The medication could be provided by any pharmacist, nurse or midwife who gets a blanket prescription from a physician for any customers.

Emergency contraceptives, also known as morning-after pills and by the brand name Plan B, are intended to prevent pregnancy by ensuring that an egg does not become fertilized. Emergency contraception can reduce the chance of pregnancy by 89 percent if taken within 72 hours of intercourse. It is different from RU-486, often called the French abortion pill, which aborts an already attached embryo.

Abortion is a murder," countered Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr., a Bronx Democrat. "We have experts and all indications are that this pill might cause abortion.""Day by day we see how parents are taken out of the picture," Diaz said in floor debate, opposing many of his Democratic colleagues. "This is wrong, the wrong message."

The bill passed 34-27 with an unusual amount of voting across party lines. Seven other states have similar measures.

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