Women's Health Ignored Again

Via Brad DeLong:

Big Brass Blog : FDA Official Quits Over Plan B Pill Delay

"I can no longer serve as staff when scientific and clinical evidence, fully evaluated and recommended for approval by the professional staff here, has been overruled."-- Susan Wood, director of FDA's Office of Women's Health, in her resignation letter

...Susan Wood, head of FDA's Office of Women's Health, announced her resignation in an e-mail to colleagues at the agency....

"The recent decision announced by the Commissioner about emergency contraception, which continues to limit women's access to a product that would reduce unintended pregnancies and reduce abortions, is contrary to my core commitment to improving and advancing women's health."

The FDA last Friday postponed indefinitely its decision on whether to allow the morning-after pill, called Plan B, to be sold without a prescription. The agency said it was safe for adults to use without a doctor's guidance but was unable to decide how to keep it out of the hands of young teenagers without a prescription -- a decision contrary to the advice of its own scientific advisers.