if it's offered in stores, whether it's offered to everyone or only people over 18, it's sending the same message...reducing the age limit isn't affecting that

i think they should let anyone buy it...why only reduce the limit by one year? what about 16 and 15 year olds? it's not like they're not also sexually active

PS: not to mention i'm sure if you're underage you can find a slightly older friend to buy it for you!

I think the age needs to be 16 to be honest. At that age kids begin driving, and if they're GOING to be sexually active, that seems to be a common age because they've got more freedom and less constant supervision. And I have a 17 year old son.

HOWEVER, to all parents of kids this age, it's STILL important to talk them about this. Just because options are available doesn't mean we can stop being parents.

exactly skigurl, its like when I (stupidly!) smoked cigarettes senior year of high school and just had an 18 year old friend buy them for me. if you need/want it, you'll find a way.

I was going to say the same thing skigurl, it's totally true if a girl can't get Plan B on her own she will turn to an older sister or friend who can buy it. I think it's better that they have access to it without having to go to a parent who in some cases will flip out and cause more issues in the long run.

Yes I think it should be.

I think it should be available to everyone, regardless of age.

I think 17 is the legal age for girls to have sex in NY ... which is why it makes sense to drop the limit from 18 to 17. 18 is the legal age for guys.

This is why I want an open relationship with my daughter. Yes I will teach her about all this sex stuff and give her the resources and if she asks the tools to stay safe and knowledgeable. The first thing that must be taught after the birds and the bees is safe sex every time.

What's the difference between 17 and 18? It's still expensive as hell and hard to get in some areas. Personally my philosophy is to make it as widely available and affordable as possible so we as a country can reduce our shameful rate of teenage pregnancies.

I don't think this should be allowed for any age. I would not want my 14 year niece buying Plan B without talking to her mom of what she's done. Kids need to be aware to practice safe sex. There should be an age limit and that age should be 18. my opinion.

bluepuppiebites: i agree with you 100%.

Yes, kids SHOULD practice safe sex and they SHOULD use condoms (pregnancy isn't the only hazard of unprotected sex!), but they often don't.

Yadiet, it would be nice if every daughter felt comfortable talking to her parent(s) about birth control, but many (most?) don't. I had a very good relationship with my parents, and it was beyond nerve racking telling them I wanted to go on the pill when I was 16 or 17.

IMO, having Plan B accessible to those under 18 is preferable to 17, 16, 15 year olds getting pregnant and having babies that they cannot support - emotionally, mentally, and financially.

I think it would not be a problem as long as they understood it's to be used if the birth control they pick doesn't work.

No.

Yes, and even if young women/women are practicing safe sex, sometimes that fails and that's when I think plan B should be used. It isn't to be used as a birth control method like the pill.

I think it should be set at 16. Even 14 year olds are doing it. I don't think it's promoting unprotected sex at all, but if lets face it, sometimes there are accidents and how are they to act to prevent something when they don't have the resources like we do?

I think if it's legal for you to have sex, it should be legal for you to get birth control in all its forms. I really think making sex okay for teenagers does not come down to whether or not the FDA allows Plan B, anymore than selling condoms in a drugstore does.

Everybody should be able to buy Plan B.

No way, let them have those babies, that should teach them

"lyv" -- what about the baby that's born to the unfit parent, what lesson is worth teaching that destroys an innocent human life in the process? that's a disgusting thing to say, we're talking about a human being here.

i'd say "plan b for everyone!" -- i don't think that ANYONE should bring a new life into this world unless they have 100% desire to have that child, 100% commitment to that child's well-being, the perfect time and opportunity, and the resources to give the child a good life. that's one of our problems today, people don't take having children nearly as seriously as it should be taken. if you aren't going to be all you can be in every way and give your entire life then don't even consider it, so yes -- plan b should be available to not only 17-year-olds but women of every age.

ive had young ppl come in for plan b and when i id them their older bf buys it anyway. i would wish they used bc pills instead, b/c its just not good for your body to take those high doses of hormones. and ive got multiple offenders! its plan b for a reason, not birth control!

should be over the counter to women of every age.

It's a sad fact, but girls as young as 11 or 12 could be having sex, and even if they are using condoms, condoms sometimes break. Making it exclusive to women over 18 is not going to discourage underage sex.... we all know that.

I don't think there should be an age put on contraception. Anyone could buy condoms so I think anyone should be able to purchase plan B.

Let's drop this age down - like many have said, the teens are going to get it any way. I had no problem getting alcohol in high school (and that was an irresponsible choice, unlike getting Plan B when a bc method fails). At least those trying to get Plan B are recognizing a mistake and trying to remedy it before it gets worse!!!

For those who commented that an older sister/friend can purchase it for an underage girl who needs it - yes, they can, and it happens all the time. HOWEVER, from a legal standpoint, they could suffer repercussions for doing so if the girl's parents decided to make a stink about it - for underage girls, it's considered a prescription medication, and we all know there are laws against sharing prescriptions with other people!

I DESPERATELY wanted to go pick it up for my brother's girlfriend (who was 16 at the time, and is now 17, although they've since broken up). She was terrified, but sadly more afraid of telling her mother then of being pregnant. I KNOW her mother is the crazy type who would press charges on me, and being a nurse would be aware she could do so. Of course, this is the crazy woman who, when they broke up, asked her daughter if "he had tried to force himself" on her and that was why she had broke up with him ... even though he had broken up with him.

So .. yeah. Point being, while girls CAN ask others to get if for them, they shouldn't have to. If they can legally have sex (in NJ, where we're from, 16 is the legal age of consent, or 13 and over w/no more then 4 years age difference), they should legally be able to protect themselves from unintended pregnancy without parental permission.

Oh .. I realized I didn't finish the story, lol .. if anyone was interested, the ex-girlfriend got lucky. She wasn't pregnant.

I think its necessary, especially since you have to be 18 to get it at Planned Parenthood. When a younger friend (16) confided in me that she needed it, I was very surprised that she didn't have access to it at a place that will give out free birth control to 14 year olds.

If someone who is under 18 needs to obtain Plan B, they will find a way to get it. I don't think there is a difference between 17 and 18 and I think anyone who needs Plan B should be able to buy it. The argument here is that teens will use Plan B as "regular" birth control but women over 18 could rely on it as regular BC too.

Yes. Even though I practised safe sex I had to buy it at 16. The condom fell off and I freaked.

It just seems odd to me that a 17-year old would have access to buy this without talking to a nurse first even if they go to a school or live in an area that uses abstinence only education. I think young people that are educated about the birds and the bees in the modern world can handle it... I think it is a different story for kids that have not ever seen a condom before and find themselves having had sex already.

I think it needs to be accessible- because if they can have sex they should have the protection available to them. However, I think perhaps there needs to be something in place where underage girls would need to sign off that the pharmacist has spoken to them about the effects. It should not be viewed as birth control. On the other hand, it is expensive so I think that alone would deter teens from using it as a birth control.

LMAO I was being sarcastic, mack2600... I haven't completely lost it yet.

Absolutely. It's been proven safe for all ages, so I don't even think it should limited to over-17's.

in california you can get an abortion at 14 can't you? through planned parenthood? i must be wrong because no one has mentioned this.

and personally if you can get a SURGERY to get rid of a baby, then for sures you should be allowed to take a pill to prevent having to get surgery. it's just logic.

absolutely, there should be no age limit at all. the less unprepared teens with babies, the better

lyv, where was your sarcasm flag? i don't know if you ever realized but those things don't translate text.

|>
|
|
|
|

There should be no age limit!!! I do not think that there is where I live (Canada). We also do not have to pay for abortions and underage girls do not need permission from a parent to get an abortion. Underage girls also get a reduced rate on birth control pills. The bottom line is that women in our history worked very hard and long to give us the reproductive rights we now have. I hope that now that Obama is president in the US he will reverse some of the ridiculous laws Bush put through. I don't understand why Americans allow these ridiculous laws to even get through.

Everyone should have access to it.

I think the way they do it here is when you go get Plan B, you have to talk to someone first - I don't it doesn't happen every time, but that's what my friend had to do a couple of years ago. Think of it, it's actually a good way to tell teens about safe sex if the parents haven't taken the time to do so.

I work with teenage parents and OH GOD the age needs to be lowered! I don't know how many would have taken Plan B? I think that the majority just don't use contraception and wouldn't even consider getting the plan B.

Also - they kind of get pregnant on purpose in some cases? You aren't going to change that until society stops trying to bandaid over it's problems and actually deals with the ground level stuff like poverty and the uneducated masses...

If people are flippin their sh*t over 1 year, then they need a life.

If I had to vote I would say OK, let them have it at 17. What a horrible choice to have to face. Anyway I suppose as someone mentioned above they'll just ask an older teenager anyway.