Newsroom
PRESS STATEMENT: Science Should Be Evidence-Based: So How Much More Evidence Do We Need?
Wayne C. Shields
President and CEO
Association of Reproductive Health Professionals (ARHP)
GAO report confirms that politics and ideology trump science in FDA's decision not to make Emergency Contraception (EC) available without a prescription
For Immediate Release
November 14, 2005
Contact:
Ann McCall or Janet Riessman
(202) 466-3825
communications@arhp.org
Evidence is mounting, bolstered by the report issued today by the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO), that politics and ideology trumped science in the FDA's unprecedented delay in making a decision about whether or not to make Plan B, the emergency contraception (EC) product, available without a prescription.
Access to EC has the potential to prevent thousands of unintended pregnancies and abortions each year and the scientific evidence overwhelmingly demonstrates that EC is safe, effective, and easy to use for women of all ages.
ARHP encourages the FDA leadership to put evidence-based science before issues of politics and ideology, to abandon their delaying tactics, and to quickly approve emergency contraception for over-the-counter use. The health and welfare of Americans is at stake.
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The Association of Reproductive Health Professionals (ARHP) is the leading
source for trusted medical education and information on reproductive and sexual
health. ARHP educates health care providers, informs consumers, and helps shape
public policy. ARHP is a non-profit membership association composed of highly
qualified and committed experts in reproductive health. ARHP members are health
professionals in clinical practice, education, research, and advocacy and they
include physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurse midwives,
researchers, educators, pharmacists, and other professionals in reproductive
health. To learn more, visit: http://www.arhp.org.
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