There’s been a recent media spaz about a story the New York Post broke on how high school girls at 13 New York City public schools can get the “morning after” pill from their school nurse--without their parent's permission. Is the hype warranted?
First, a little local knowledge. The so-called morning after pill—Plan B One Step—is also available here in St. Louis as an over-the-counter drug. Anyone over 17 can ask for the pill at their local Target, Walmart or Walgreens pharmacy and get it, without a prescription. Which is kind of the point—the drug is only effective as birth control if taken immediately after the act. You can also get it online at Amazon, but we’re not sure that you’d want to wait for shipping (unless you’re planning for future emergencies).
17 year old girls are seniors, maybe even juniors, in high school.
The pill is about $40 a dose, so it’s not cheap, but considering the alternative…
And in case you didn’t know, Plan B is basically a massive dose of progesterone, similar to what you find in ordinary once-a-day birth control pills. It cannot kill a fetus (which is why it’s taken right after sex) but it does delay ovulation. If taken within a 72 hour window, the pill’s website says it can prevent pregnancy in 7 out of 8 women.
Now, back to New York.
According to the New York Times, the program that is allowing school kids access to birth control is part of a pilot program that puts privately run health centers in the schools. The centers are staffed by doctors from the health department.
This is not a case of school nurses handing out birth control when parents can’t even let their daughter’s pack Tylenol.
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