VANCOUVER, May 1, (LifeSiteNews.com) – Although the BC College of Physicians and Surgeons and the BC Ministry of Health had boasted that the abortifacient morning after pill (MAP) would be available over-the-counter in BC as of today, legal problems have muddied their plans. A BC Ministry of Health spokeswoman backpedaled last week on the dangerously easy availability promised for the pill. “There has not been a change in legislation and no new legislation is being considered,” Nadine Criddle told the Nanaimo Daily News Wednesday. “It is still only available through prescription by a physician.”
LifeSite has confirmed that the legal difficulties arise from the federal governance of the drug. Dr. Andre-Marie Leroux, a medical officer at Health Canada’s Therapeutic Drugs Program ,said the licensing provision used to approve the abortifacient morning after pill stipulated that the drugs would be available only by prescription by a physician.
In related news, Shire, the Canadian distributor of the abortifacient MAP Preven has announced that the cost of the drug kit will be reduced from $22 to $5 by May 1. Pro-life pharmacists and leaders question both the timing and intent of this move. Ted Gerk of BC’s Pro-Life Resource Centre told LifeSite that the move seems to be designed to have vulnerable women hooked on the drug and then reap in the profit with increased prices later. “Were they ripping women off previously charging over four times this amount?,” asked Gerk.
Related LifeSite stories:
ABORTIVE DRUG PREVEN APPROVED IN CANADA
EARLY ABORTION DRUG AVAILABLE OVER THE COUNTER