Just days before the court-ordered decision for all age-restrictions to be removed regarding purchase of the Plan B One Step pill, the FDA moved to make the pill available over-the-counter to women and girls 15 years of age or older.
The decision is separate from the court order and seeks to find middle ground between the decision and the FDA, the Associated Press reported.
The move comes in response to Teva Women's Health, Inc.'s application submitted to the FDA to allow for the age limit to be removed back in 2011. The FDA denied this request, approving this amendment instead, the agency said in a statement.
Prior to this decision, only persons 17 years of age or older with proper identification could purchase the pill at the pharmacy counter.
Under this change, Plan B One-Step will be available on drugstore shelves for sale during normal retail hours, even after the pharmacy has closed. Stores will place locks on the items to prevent theft.
Those without proof of age will not be allowed to purchase the pill.
FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said the amendment was approved because evidence showed that lowering the age limit was highly likely to decrease the chances of unwanted pregnancy for teens.
"The data reviewed by the agency demonstrated that women 15 years of age and older were able to understand how Plan B One-Step works, how to use it properly, and that it does not prevent the transmission of a sexually transmitted disease," she said in a statement.
Plan B One-Step is an emergency contraceptive intended to raise hormone levels to keep a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus. The pill does not work if the user is already pregnant, and the FDA reports no evidence that the product could cause harm to the fetus.
Plan B One-Step only requires the user to take one pill as soon as possible after birth control fails. Other brands of the product require two pills. The pills are recommended to be taken no later than three days after birth control failure, but have been proven to work for almost a week afterward.
The women's group, the Center for Reproductive Rights, said Tuesday's decision was not enough and that it will continue to fight until the age bans are lifted.
Among critics of the age limit for Plan B is U.S. District Judge Edward Korman of New York who accused President Barack Obama, a supporter of the age limit of 17, of getting too caught up in election-year politics to pay attention to science.
A spokesperson for Obama said earlier this month that the president's position hadn't changed since 2011 when the age limit was first challenged.
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