Andrew C. von Eschenbach is acting FDA Commissioner. He wants to become the permanent head of the FDA. For this to happen he has to get approval from lawmakers, specifically by the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. This committee is made up of Democrats and Republicans.

There is a drug called The Morning After Pill, also known as Plan B. If a woman takes it within 72 hours of having unprotected sex her chances of becoming pregnant go down by 89%. The treatment consists of two pills. It is a contraceptive.

For a woman to get the Morning After Pill in the USA she needs a doctor’s prescription. An FDA Advisory Committee some years ago recommended that the drug be available over-the-counter (OTC), i.e. without needing to get a doctor’s prescription. The FDA usually does what the Committee recommends. However, in this case it has not done so. Some Democrat lawmakers in the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee are suspicious that the FDA, rather than working as it should, making decisions based on science, is dragging its feet because of political pressure from conservatives.

Suddenly there is talk of making Plan B an OTC drug. It is no surprise that this talk coincides with Eschenbach’s having to appear before the lawmakers who have to decide whether he gets the permanent post.

A couple of years ago the FDA (not the advisory committeee) suggested that perhaps only women over 16 should get this pill without needing a prescription. Last year the age edged up to 17, now Eschenbach suggests 18. Democrats feel that the choosing of the minimum age is arbitrary. When asked why he had chosen 18, Eschenbach said there had to be a cut-off point. He added that as the purchase of tobacco is only legal for those over 18 this would be a good age for this contraceptive. The FDA Advisory Committee some years ago recommended the drug be an OTC one, regardless of age.

The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee has to decide whether Eschenbach gets the job next month. How this Morning After Pill is treated by the FDA could play a vital role on which way some of the lawmakers vote.

Some people oppose turning Plan B into an OTC drug. They say that it could encourage younger people to become more promiscuous. Others say it is a form of abortion as it stops the fertilized egg from implanting itself onto the wall of the uterus.

The way the FDA has dragged its feet on this issue has led many scientists, doctors and academics to wonder how scientifically independent the FDA really is.

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton told von Eschenbach “You are caught, unfortunately, in a situation that gives great pause to many of us because of what it means for the future of the FDA. It has been turned into a political football, and you are on the field. Once we start to politicize the FDA, there is no stopping. This is a slippery, dangerous slope we are on, Doctor, and we are looking to you to get a decision made.”

Democrat members of the committee that has to decide on Eschenbach’s nomination have put the decision on hold until an FDA decision on The Morning After Pill is made.

Eschenbach’s proposal for a minimum age of 18 was criticized by Clinton. Eschenbach had asked Barr Pharmaceuticals, the makers of this pill, to convince the FDA that it would make sure underage girls did not have access to it without a doctor’s prescription. Clinton suggested it was a bit like asking beer makers to police underage drinking.

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today