Plan B is a Good Thing
Recently I've noticed a lot of buzz about plan B in the media and in the world of blogging. Some people have come out in opposition to Plan B and made a lot of arguments that I think are flawed, so I'm adressing some of the more prevalent ones that I've seen. Maybe this will alter some viewpoints.
Arguments Against Plan B in general.
A lot of people have been sqeamish about Plan B because their feeling is that it will negate personal responsibility. A drug that allows for the prevention of pregnancy after sex would allow for people to get off with consequence free unprotected sex, so runs the general argument I've been reading. If you follow this argument to its natural conclusion, all people who realized the morning after that they had had unprotected sex should roll with the dice and accept any conception that should occur, even if they are not emotionally, financially, or physically prepared for it, because that is the responsible thing to do. Does it sound unwise now? I know that people are genuinely (and rightfully) concerned about the lack of personal responsibilty shown by people in our society. However, if one is sincerely not prepared for a pregnancy and makes a mistake that may lead to it, the responsible thing is to follow the only course of action left that may prevent a pregnancy, because responsibilty later is better than responsibilty never. In short, sometimes Plan B is the responsible choice.
In addition, I should point out here that Plan B is not by any means 100% effective. The old morning after pill (essentially a double dose of birth control pills) was only 75% effective if taken immediately, less so the later it was taken. I believe the new Plan B pill decreses in effectiveness as well, and the packaging I've seen for it only lists its effectiveness at 80%. This is not a get out of jail free card. It's a last ditch effort.
Another popular argument that I've seen is the old "only for rape and incest vitims" line. There are some problems with it. For instance, rape is an underreported crime. The numbers differ depending on where you go to get them, so think on this: how many rape victims do you know? How many reported the crime? How many were willing to admit publicly, within seventy two hours, that they had been raped? And here's one more; how many were initially believed? Blame the victim is alive, even if weakened, in our culture. Suppose the victim does report rape. Suppose that they are believed. Then the official channels would still have to verify it. Where in the 72 hour margin of effectiveness does that leave the victim when they've finished? Isn't it better to leave the availability open, even if one is taking the only for rape or incest stance from a moral perspective?
And some info about the over the counter purchasing and cost.
Doctors and Planned Parenthood clinincs are notoriously bad about being open on weekends. So if you made a mistake or were sexually assualted, and it was on a Friday night, you may not be able to see a physician in a timely fashion. Thursday, Monday, fine. But don't you dare have an emergency on the weekend. Yes, some doctors will make time to see you on an emergency basis. But a low income clinic like the Planned Parenthood in my hometown couldn't. They never even had a human being there to answer the phones if it wasn't a weekday. It wasn't malice, it was a funding problem. This left you at the local ER, where the average waiting period for a person without insurance to be spoken to at all was ten hours, the hope of preventing pregnancy getting smaller with every one of them. Maybe you have insurance. Maybe you have a relationship with a private doctor who will make time for your emergencies on his or her weekend. Lucky you. Not everyone has that.
And then we talk of cost. A doctors appointment can run from $60 to $80 dollars (without insurance) just to be standing in the room to get a prescription. I'm not sure how much the pill itself costs. A trip to the ER where Plan B is administered would run about $120. Again, without insurance. Planned Parenthood will give the stuff away, but that's assuming that there is one in your area and that you can get in early enough for the pill to work. For some people, over the counter is both more affordable and more timely.
That said, the concerns.
The only concerns that I have with the pill being made available over the counter are side effects and misuse. It was probably soundly tested, but I haven't seen the data personally so I really don't know about the potential for side effects. I can't say that there are no major ones until I've seen that. The other concern that I have is that women who are panicked and not firing on all cylinders will buy these pills because they think it will stop a pregnancy that they already know about. These drugs usually cause birth defects, so misuse could be dangerous.
Hopefully this was food for thought. There is one other comment that I wanted to make though. Both within the anti abortion argument and the anti plan b argument I've enountered the "you play, you pay" ideolgy. The idea is that if you've had sex and gotten pregnant you deserve to be pregnant, like its a punishment. This is profoundly sick thinking. Childbirth should never be a punishment. Children should never be a punishment. Becoming a parent should be a joyful occaision. I can't believe anyone actually needs this pointed out to them.
Arguments Against Plan B in general.
A lot of people have been sqeamish about Plan B because their feeling is that it will negate personal responsibility. A drug that allows for the prevention of pregnancy after sex would allow for people to get off with consequence free unprotected sex, so runs the general argument I've been reading. If you follow this argument to its natural conclusion, all people who realized the morning after that they had had unprotected sex should roll with the dice and accept any conception that should occur, even if they are not emotionally, financially, or physically prepared for it, because that is the responsible thing to do. Does it sound unwise now? I know that people are genuinely (and rightfully) concerned about the lack of personal responsibilty shown by people in our society. However, if one is sincerely not prepared for a pregnancy and makes a mistake that may lead to it, the responsible thing is to follow the only course of action left that may prevent a pregnancy, because responsibilty later is better than responsibilty never. In short, sometimes Plan B is the responsible choice.
In addition, I should point out here that Plan B is not by any means 100% effective. The old morning after pill (essentially a double dose of birth control pills) was only 75% effective if taken immediately, less so the later it was taken. I believe the new Plan B pill decreses in effectiveness as well, and the packaging I've seen for it only lists its effectiveness at 80%. This is not a get out of jail free card. It's a last ditch effort.
Another popular argument that I've seen is the old "only for rape and incest vitims" line. There are some problems with it. For instance, rape is an underreported crime. The numbers differ depending on where you go to get them, so think on this: how many rape victims do you know? How many reported the crime? How many were willing to admit publicly, within seventy two hours, that they had been raped? And here's one more; how many were initially believed? Blame the victim is alive, even if weakened, in our culture. Suppose the victim does report rape. Suppose that they are believed. Then the official channels would still have to verify it. Where in the 72 hour margin of effectiveness does that leave the victim when they've finished? Isn't it better to leave the availability open, even if one is taking the only for rape or incest stance from a moral perspective?
And some info about the over the counter purchasing and cost.
Doctors and Planned Parenthood clinincs are notoriously bad about being open on weekends. So if you made a mistake or were sexually assualted, and it was on a Friday night, you may not be able to see a physician in a timely fashion. Thursday, Monday, fine. But don't you dare have an emergency on the weekend. Yes, some doctors will make time to see you on an emergency basis. But a low income clinic like the Planned Parenthood in my hometown couldn't. They never even had a human being there to answer the phones if it wasn't a weekday. It wasn't malice, it was a funding problem. This left you at the local ER, where the average waiting period for a person without insurance to be spoken to at all was ten hours, the hope of preventing pregnancy getting smaller with every one of them. Maybe you have insurance. Maybe you have a relationship with a private doctor who will make time for your emergencies on his or her weekend. Lucky you. Not everyone has that.
And then we talk of cost. A doctors appointment can run from $60 to $80 dollars (without insurance) just to be standing in the room to get a prescription. I'm not sure how much the pill itself costs. A trip to the ER where Plan B is administered would run about $120. Again, without insurance. Planned Parenthood will give the stuff away, but that's assuming that there is one in your area and that you can get in early enough for the pill to work. For some people, over the counter is both more affordable and more timely.
That said, the concerns.
The only concerns that I have with the pill being made available over the counter are side effects and misuse. It was probably soundly tested, but I haven't seen the data personally so I really don't know about the potential for side effects. I can't say that there are no major ones until I've seen that. The other concern that I have is that women who are panicked and not firing on all cylinders will buy these pills because they think it will stop a pregnancy that they already know about. These drugs usually cause birth defects, so misuse could be dangerous.
Hopefully this was food for thought. There is one other comment that I wanted to make though. Both within the anti abortion argument and the anti plan b argument I've enountered the "you play, you pay" ideolgy. The idea is that if you've had sex and gotten pregnant you deserve to be pregnant, like its a punishment. This is profoundly sick thinking. Childbirth should never be a punishment. Children should never be a punishment. Becoming a parent should be a joyful occaision. I can't believe anyone actually needs this pointed out to them.
posted by jen at 6:37 PM
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