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COSTA RICA |
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"Morning After Pill" Continues Stuck In
Costa Rica's Congress
The "Morning After Pill" - the emergency
contraception - in Costa Rica is still far
from reality for many women to prevent
pregnancy after unprotected sex, as the law
that would allow the distribution and sale
of the pill is stalled in the Legislature
for more than two years.
Promoters of the pill say accidents happen
and the the morning after pill) will avoid
pregnancy after intercourse without
protection.
The Ministerio de Salud has determined that
the pill is not "abortive", but its sale is
still restricted in Costa Rica, even though
the ministerio is ready to allow its
distribution.
But, why its sale still banned in Costa
Rica?
The answer is that it requires the will
power of legislature to dust off the
legislation that has been shelved at the
Comisión de Asuntos Sociales de la Asamblea
Legislativa for the last two years.
The approval of the legislation would allow
the Caja Costarricense del Seguro Social (CCSS)
to also distribute the pills to women who
ask for it.
Some people get confused and think that
emergency contraceptive pills, or morning
after pills, are the same as “abortion
pills”.
Medical experts in the US and Europe are
clear that the emergency contraceptive and
abortion pills differ and have permittes its
use for the last four decades.
In Latin America, 15 countries, including
Brazil and Mexico, permit the sale of the
morning after pill, even though those
countries had to face strong opposition from
religious, political and social pressures.
First, the morning after pill contains a
completely different drug than the hormones
found in the birth control pills used for
emergency contraception. Second, emergency
contraceptive pills prevent pregnancy, so
they work differently than the abortion
pill.
Here's how the morning-after pill works.
Human conception rarely occurs immediately
after intercourse. Instead, it occurs as
long as several days later, after ovulation.
During the time between intercourse and
conception, sperm continue to travel through
the fallopian tube until the egg appears. So
taking emergency birth control the "morning
after" isn't too late to prevent pregnancy.
The morning-after pill is designed to be
taken within 72 hours of intercourse with a
second dose taken 12 hours later. Plan B
One-Step works with one dose. Side effects
may include nausea, vomiting, abdominal
pain, fatigue, dizziness, menstrual changes
and headache. According to the manufacturer,
the morning-after pill is more than 80
percent effective in preventing pregnancy
after a single act of unprotected sex.
Morning-after pills aren't the same as
mifepristone (Mifeprex), the so-called
abortion pill. Emergency contraceptive pills
such as Plan B prevent pregnancy. The
abortion pill terminates an established
pregnancy — one in which the fertilized egg
has attached to the uterine wall and has
already begun to develop.
Plan B is available to women and girls age
17 and older without a prescription at most
pharmacies. You must show proof of age to
purchase Plan B. For girls age 16 and
younger, Plan B is available only with a
doctor's prescription. |
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