A new, longer-lasting “morning-after” pill to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex was approved by the FDA.
The prescription drug, called ella, is made by French company HRA Pharma and will be sold in the United States by Watson Pharmaceuticals.
Ella has been shown to prevent pregnancy for up to five days and is first emergency contraceptive approved since a five-year battle under the Bush administration ended with limited over-the-counter sales and age checks by pharmacists for a rival pill.
The Food and Drug Administration said it cleared ella based on two clinical trials that showed the drug was safe and effective.
While morning-after pills have not been particularly lucrative, they have been the cause of controversy, especially in the USA.
Conservatives, Republicans and other critics have argued making another morning-after pill available and one that works even longer after sex will promote promiscuity even further.
“The FDA opted against including the critical fact that ella can cause an abortion on a baby already implanted in its mother’s womb in the drug labeling information,” said Jeanne Monahan, director of the Center for Human Dignity at the Family Research Council.
However, Democrats, women’s groups and other advocates say the pills offer women much-needed options to plan their families.
“Every woman deserves every option available to prevent an unplanned pregnancy” said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, “and there are many reasons why a woman may face the risk of unintended pregnancy – from failure or improper use of birth control, to sexual assault”.
