5 ms·

The FDA could permanently lift some restrictions on abortion pills

35 points by News-Dog 5y ago

kaminar 5y ago
72% of ALL human deaths are due to abortions...read that again. Approx 40 million/year, and counting... Making it easier to kill children by mailing a do-it-yourself, easy home murder kit is of course the best way for this OBGYN to 10x her income...no more wasted time seeing patients.
JakeAl 5y ago
Last I heard Bush approved the pill for purchase over the counter in the early 2000s for those over the age of 17 and in 2016 a judge declared the age restriction should be lifted. Not sure where the prescription requirement came in.
- smt88 5y ago
  It was never over-the-counter in the US. Clinton ordered the FDA to investigate it in the 90s, and it was approved in late 2000 by his FDA, not Bush's. The elder Bush had banned its import in 1989.
- tssva 5y ago
  You are confusing Plan B, the morning after pill, with the abortion pill.
helloworld11 5y ago
Not sure in this case, but some of the medications for which prescriptions are necessary in the U.S. are absolutely absurd. Where I live in another country, if you need many common medicines, you just walk into a pharmacy and ask for them. Done. I can understand clinically controlling sales of antibiotics and heavy pain killers or opiods but requiring a prescription for birth control pills, or prednisone, or so many other basic things that most people know how to use just fine? What infantalization in the name of paranoid "safety" theater.
- amluto 5y ago
  Prednisone? Prednisone is quite dangerous, especially if used improperly. Some forms of birth control have fairly common contraindications, and patients should arguably be screened. That being said, a pharmacist could do this.
  - helloworld11 5y ago
    So is a kitchen knife, or a power drill, or a chainsaw, all of which can be bought in any hardware store or supermarket without special documents. There is a certain measure of simply letting people take personal risks that should be plausible and allowed in adult life. Antibiotics I can understand, because the resistance one creates within themself from improper use can affect others very badly. Likewise for opiods, which can cause people to lose personal control or coherence in situations such as driving down a highway at 100+ km per hour. For many other medications, the damage will be personal, and the choice should be as well. Your argument falls flat in the face of so many other things that you would also have to ban without written permission if prednisone or birth control pills were one of your baselines for prohibiting personal risk. Also, yes I know that prednisone is dangerous. I've been using it intermittently for a long time. I don't think anyone should have the right to treat me like a child on something so easy to learn responsibly.
    - joshjdr 5y ago
      > which can cause people to lose personal control or coherence in situations such as driving down a highway at 100+ km per hour What about alcohol? Should a prescription be required?
      - helloworld11 5y ago
        As per my original fundamental argument, no. But the amount of alcohol you need to consume in order to drive yourself into an early grave is quite a bit slower in the consumption process than rapidly overdosing on opioid pills. Likewise for consuming a lethal amount of alcohol in most cases. Also, alcohol is nowhere near as rapidly addictive as this particular medication.
News-Dog 5y ago
<https://text.npr.org/1064598531 https://text.npr.org/1064598531> Update: FDA relaxes controversial restrictions on access to Abortion pill by mail >The Food and Drug Administration has announced it will relax controversial restrictions on a heavily regulated medication used to induce abortions — easing access to the drug at a time when abortion rights are being increasingly restricted nationwide.<

35 points by News-Dog 5y ago

72% of ALL human deaths are due to abortions...read that again. Approx 40 million/year, and counting... Making it easier to kill children by mailing a do-it-yourself, easy home murder kit is of course the best way for this OBGYN to 10x her income...no more wasted time seeing patients.

JakeAl 5y ago

Last I heard Bush approved the pill for purchase over the counter in the early 2000s for those over the age of 17 and in 2016 a judge declared the age restriction should be lifted. Not sure where the prescription requirement came in.

smt88 5y ago
It was never over-the-counter in the US. Clinton ordered the FDA to investigate it in the 90s, and it was approved in late 2000 by his FDA, not Bush's. The elder Bush had banned its import in 1989.
tssva 5y ago
You are confusing Plan B, the morning after pill, with the abortion pill.

helloworld11 5y ago

Not sure in this case, but some of the medications for which prescriptions are necessary in the U.S. are absolutely absurd. Where I live in another country, if you need many common medicines, you just walk into a pharmacy and ask for them. Done. I can understand clinically controlling sales of antibiotics and heavy pain killers or opiods but requiring a prescription for birth control pills, or prednisone, or so many other basic things that most people know how to use just fine? What infantalization in the name of paranoid "safety" theater.

amluto 5y ago
Prednisone? Prednisone is quite dangerous, especially if used improperly. Some forms of birth control have fairly common contraindications, and patients should arguably be screened. That being said, a pharmacist could do this.
- helloworld11 5y ago
  So is a kitchen knife, or a power drill, or a chainsaw, all of which can be bought in any hardware store or supermarket without special documents. There is a certain measure of simply letting people take personal risks that should be plausible and allowed in adult life. Antibiotics I can understand, because the resistance one creates within themself from improper use can affect others very badly. Likewise for opiods, which can cause people to lose personal control or coherence in situations such as driving down a highway at 100+ km per hour. For many other medications, the damage will be personal, and the choice should be as well. Your argument falls flat in the face of so many other things that you would also have to ban without written permission if prednisone or birth control pills were one of your baselines for prohibiting personal risk. Also, yes I know that prednisone is dangerous. I've been using it intermittently for a long time. I don't think anyone should have the right to treat me like a child on something so easy to learn responsibly.
  - joshjdr 5y ago
    > which can cause people to lose personal control or coherence in situations such as driving down a highway at 100+ km per hour What about alcohol? Should a prescription be required?
    - helloworld11 5y ago
      As per my original fundamental argument, no. But the amount of alcohol you need to consume in order to drive yourself into an early grave is quite a bit slower in the consumption process than rapidly overdosing on opioid pills. Likewise for consuming a lethal amount of alcohol in most cases. Also, alcohol is nowhere near as rapidly addictive as this particular medication.

News-Dog 5y ago

<https://text.npr.org/1064598531 https://text.npr.org/1064598531> Update: FDA relaxes controversial restrictions on access to Abortion pill by mail >The Food and Drug Administration has announced it will relax controversial restrictions on a heavily regulated medication used to induce abortions — easing access to the drug at a time when abortion rights are being increasingly restricted nationwide.<