Posted on 10/12/2006 4:45:33 PM PDT by wagglebee
New York, NY (LifeNews.com) -- A pro-abortion law firm has filed a lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration over its recent decision to allow over the counter sales of the morning after pill. The Center for Reproductive Rights filed a legal complaint in an attempt to force the agency to extend the sales to teenagers under the age of 18.
When the FDA entered into an agreement with Barr Laboratories, the maker of the Plan B drug, it prohibited anyone under 18 from purchasing the morning after pill without a prescription.
That hasn't gone over well with abortion advocates and CRR, representing several pro-abortion women, filed a complaint against the federal agency in a federal court in Brooklyn this week.
The complaint replaces a similar one the group had filed against the FDA previously over its previous postponements on whether or not it would allow over the counter sales.
The previous complaint featured a debate between the pro-abortion law firm and the White House over whether it had to submit documents of discussions between the Bush administration and the FDA about the legal status of the Plan B drug.
According to an Associated Press report, attorneys for the FDA appeared in the Brooklyn federal court Wednesday and asked a magistrate to stop CRR from getting access to any more government documents until a ruling is handed down about whether the new legal complaint can proceed.
Judge Viktor V. Pohorelsky did not rule on the request but hinted that he would likely side with CRR to allow its lawyers to continue getting government documents. He appeared to believe it was the only way to confirm the Bush administration's potential influence on the OTC approval process.
"It's not like they're fishing," Pohorelsky said of the pro-abortion attorneys.
But, Assistant U.S. Attorney F. Franklin Amanat said the CRR attorneys had not produced enough evidence to meet the typically high standards that must be met for the release of confidential presidential records.
"They have nothing but speculation, hearsay, innuendo and opinions," he said, according to the AP report.
The FDA has said that it made its decision on the over the counter sales on scientific grounds and that its decision should be upheld even if the Bush administration lobbied it.
A Utah doctor who was a member of a Food and Drug Administration's advisory panel says the morning after pill will not reduce the number of abortions and pregnancies that its supports claim it will do. He also indicated that the Plan B drug can work as an abortion agent in certain circumstances.
Dr. Joseph Stanford, associate professor of family and preventative medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine, said the morning after pill won't be as effective as its maker claims.
He told the Deseret News that studies he and fellow researchers have done show a lower effectiveness rate than the 89 percent Barr Laboratories claims.
"We did more a precise meta-analysis that shows it's effective only 72 percent of the time, and even that number is optimistic," he indicated.
He also told the newspaper that studies from Europe, China and the United States show that the morning after pill does not reduce abortions. In fact, new abortion figures in England and Scotland show that abortions have reached their highest point ever despite over the counter sales of Plan B.
"In all cases, they found there was no effect on abortion rates and unintended pregnancy rates," he says.
However, the "reproductive rights" crowd WANTS more abortions.
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The FDA doesn't sell pills.
Do we sell any other drug to minors OTC? I'm not sure if a minor can even buy cough syrup.
I'm fairly certain they can buy asprin and things like that.
How so?
Just wondering where the list of Moral Absolutes might be found ?
St. Jerome
"I cannot bring myself to speak of the many virgins who daily fall and are lost to the bosom of the Church, their mother. . . . Some go so far as to take potions, that they may insure barrenness, and thus murder human beings almost before their conception. Some, when they find themselves with child through their sin, use drugs to procure abortion, and when, as often happens, they die with their offspring, they enter the lower world laden with the guilt not only of adultery against Christ but also of suicide and child murder" (Letters 22:13 [A.D. 396]).
"I cannot bring myself to speak of the many virgins who daily fall and are lost to the bosom of the Church, their mother. . "
Is there some deeper Hell for virgins who go further then simply "fall " ?
You're quibbling over the first sentence? How 'bout the rest? It is a sin to kill. That is a moral absolute.
Minucius Felix
"There are some [pagan] women who, by drinking medical preparations, extinguish the source of the future man in their very bowels and thus commit a parricide before they bring forth. And these things assuredly come down from the teaching of your [false] gods. . . . To us [Christians] it is not lawful either to see or hear of homicide" (Octavius 30 [A.D. 226]).
"You're quibbling over the first sentence?"
Nope - just wondering where the borders of an "absolute" are -
Maintanence of viginity appears not to be it.
... just checking
Just that there seems to be alot of manipulation of efficacy data (withheld data, late studies etc.) across the entire pharmaceutical industry. The Vioxx case, of course, comes to mind...Another, in my opinion would be the Vaxgen HIV vacine that was allowed to "skip" some crucial trials. Scientifically, everyone knew the vaccine was going to tank based on the structure of the antigen and that's why NIH gave up on it..but the company was shrewd and went from a small no name company to a recognized company by continuing the work, then got a sweet governent Anthrax contract before the HIV vaxcine results crapped out. Another thing, is that the pharmaceutical companies (smaller ones in particular) are now outsourcing their clinical trials to 3rd world countries to reduce cost...Now tell me, that's not gonna make the problem worse?!...Lastly, I also hear stuf that I keep to myself...
Aside from the above, I am skeptical of the "direct advertizing" going on, which puts patient pressure on physicians to prescribe certain medication, often with razor thin marginal benefits over placebo. If you ever get physician samples, read the statistical data in the package inserts...For some drugs, it's a total waste. But of course so little numbers of drugs have been comming through the pipeline, the industry has to rely on direct advertizing and there's pressure on everyone, physician, insurance, FDA to get more drugs approved. I believe it was the WSJ (two years ago) where I read that industry dividend payouts were 10 times R&D investment for that year. Look at the crap they're marketing..."restless legs syndromes!?!?! For cryin' ouy loud. For the industry, it's still all about "consolidation" and slick marketing for these "amorphous syndromes".
Don't get me wrong, generally speaking, despite its problems, I think the FDA is one of the better governmental organizations.
Now, as for the Barr labs in particular, should anyone trust a company that puts babies in buckets?
Borders of an absolute? That would depend if we are speaking of long established rules of moral behavior or rules for football.
St. Clement of Alexandria, Christ the Educator, 2:10, 202 A.D.
"If we should but control our lusts at the start and if we would not kill off the human race born and developing according to the divine plan, then our whole lives would be lived according to nature."
"Women who resort to some sort of deadly abortion drug kill not only the embryo, but, along with it, all human kindness." Ibid, 23:174
"Borders of an absolute? "
Is there a problem with that ? ...
an absolute MUST have defined borders ... and if they are long established they should be easy to define ...
Like ... if you lose your virginity and are not married you are going to hell ...
Is there a problem with that being a Moral Absolute ?
Not at all, I apologise, mis-understood you. There always must be a defining line. In the context of Church teaching, the losing of your virginity before marriage is a sin. That is clearly defined. Murder is also a sin (in all it's forms). I was mearly demonstrating how the Church's teaching on abortion has not changed, nor can it be since it a commandment of God and not subject to revision.
"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"
Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matthew 22: 36-40)
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