Barr Laboratories' emergency contraceptive Plan B now is available for nonprescription sales at pharmacies across the country -- a month after the company began distributing the pill -- but some independently owned pharmacies are not stocking it because of pharmacists' moral objections or perceived lack of demand, the AP/USA Today reports (Crary, AP/USA Today, 12/6). Barr on Nov. 6 announced that its subsidiary Duramed Pharmaceuticals had begun to ship Plan B -- which can prevent pregnancy if taken up to 72 hours after sexual intercourse -- to U.S. pharmacies. FDA in August approved the company's application to allow nonprescription sales of Plan B to women ages 18 and older. The approval of Barr's application requires the company to "[m]onitor the effectiveness of the age restriction and the safe distribution of [nonprescription] Plan B to consumers [ages] 18 and above and prescription Plan B to women under 18." Barr has agreed to send "anonymous shoppers" into pharmacies to test compliance with the age restriction, to distribute with the drug a booklet about its proper use, and to exclude gas stations and convenience stores from selling the drug. Barr spokesperson Carol Cox in August said the cost of the prescription form of Plan B to girls ages 17 and younger, which is about $25 to $40, likely will increase because of higher distribution and packaging costs (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 11/8).

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Major pharmacy chains -- such as CVS, Rite-Aid and Walgreen -- are carrying Plan B in all their stores and have pledged to ensure that customers can buy it at each store even if a certain employee declines to sell the pill because of moral objections. CVS officials said a pharmacist who refuses to sell Plan B must arrange for another employee to sell it, and the pharmacist must ensure that the customer "is served promptly and treated with respect." According to AP/USA Today, more than 350 Planned Parenthood Federation of America affiliates in 30 states on Wednesday gave the pill to clients at no cost to mark its expanded availability. PPFA also receives a discount from Barr and sells Plan B at a reduced cost, the AP/USA Today reports. Some opponents of expanded EC access say future studies might help to cast doubt on the pill's merits, adding that they will advocate for legislation in state legislatures to restrict access to the pill. "The battle is not over," Wendy Wright, president of Concerned Women for America, said, adding, "There are more things we can do and will be doing." Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi and South Dakota have laws that allow pharmacists to opt out of providing EC if they have moral objections. Cox said that Barr does not expect detailed sales information on Plan B until February (AP/USA Today, 12/6).