The announcement infuriated Democrats and abortion rights advocates, who said the Food and Drug Administration allowed politics to trump science. Abortion opponents, however, said the application should be rejected.Lester M. Crawford, the commissioner of food and drugs, said in a news conference that his agency had decided that the science supported giving over-the-counter access of the drug to women 17 and older, but that the agency could not figure out how to do that from regulatory and practical standpoints without younger teenagers' obtaining the pills, too.
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The agency has never allowed a drug to be sold simultaneously over the counter and by prescription with the same label and strength, Dr. Crawford said. More important, he added, the agency could not figure out how to enforce the age restrictions.
"F.D.A. cannot have an inspector in every pharmacy in the U.S.," he said.
Huh? Alcohol is sold over the counter in many states and the 21-and-over ban is enforced by the simple expedient of carding people who look under 21 and periodically sending in young-looking cops to check that the stores are following the policies. If the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board can figure out ID card technology, you'd figure out that the FDA would be able to.
"If the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board can figure out ID card technology, you'd figure out that the FDA would be able to."
Liquor sales are a local issue...the feds have nothing to do with it. THAT's why the FDA is clueless.