Many argue that the millennial generation has become more liberal with their bodies and have little regard for the consequences of unprotected sex. After a night of unprotected sex, many people— Lake Forest College students included—turn to Plan B, a form of emergency contraception.
According to a study done in 2013, conducted by the Center for Disease Control, 11 percent of women in the United States between the ages of 15 and 44 have used emergency contraception, which have no age requirement.
“It works mainly by stopping the release of an egg from the ovary. It is possible that Plan B One- Step® may also work by preventing fertilization of an egg (the uniting of sperm with the egg) or by preventing attachment (implantation) to the uterus (womb). It should not be used as regular birth control, as it is not as effective,” according to Plan B’s website.
Both Plan B and Ella, the “week-after-pill,” are currently considered contraceptives by the FDA and are covered under health insurance plans. The abortion drug RU486, or Mifeprex, is not.
In reference to calling Plan B and Ella “abortion pills,” Susan Wood, professor of health policy at George Washington University and a former assistant commissioner for women’s health at the Food and Drug Administration, said: “It is not only factually incorrect, it is downright misleading. These products are not abortifacients…And their only connection to abortion is that they can prevent the need for one.”
This leads back to the moral issue of abortion. “I want to be allowed to make my own decisions about my body, especially if I were in a situation when I was not prepared to bring new life into this world,” said Martina Bright ’15.
“I am pro-choice in my personal beliefs. I do not feel ready to take care of another person at this point in life, and the idea of giving my child away after carrying it for nine months does not feel right,” said Caterina Frollano ’18. “In case I get pregnant in the next year, I would probably opt for Plan B.”
Frollano knows someone who used Plan B last year. “It was definitely traumatic for her to decide if it was the right thing to do, but the idea of going through the troubles caused by the accidental pregnancy was too much for her,” she said.
Those who are pro-choice seem to think more into the future with a practical eye rather than the more radical pro-life side, which has sought to discredit and destroy abortion clinics and make the process of procuring contraceptives more difficult.
Which side will win in this debate of morals and the rights of individuals is unclear, but it is clear that members of both parties are prepared to stand by their guns and argue until there is a last man, or rather woman, standing.
