Morning After Pill Research Paper

In the United States, there were 309,060 teen pregnancies from the ages of 15 to 19 (Duffy 1). These numbers are alarming because teen pregnancy can cause many bumps along the road. There are many ways to prevent teen pregnancy, such as, condoms, birth control, and simply abstinence. However, when everything else fails there is an emergency contraception that helps prevent pregnancy, which is the morning-after pill. The morning-after pill is an emergency contraception taken after unprotected sex or when any mishaps occur with any of the birth control method. The morning-after pill is sold over the counter to ages 17 and older. In order for a minor to buy the morning-after pill, they need to get ahold of a prescription or have an adult buy it for them. The sooner the morning-after pill is taken, the more effective it is. Having minors wait for an adult to buy the morning-after pill for them or wait for a prescription, increases their chances of being a teen parent, therefore, the morning-after pill should be sold to minors. In order for the emergency contraception to be effective it needs to be taken within 3 days. However, the sooner it is taken, the more effective. By simply taking this emergency contraception it can decrease the minor’s chances of being a teenage parent. As Emily M. Godfrey mentions, “Teen pregnancy can increase the risk of poor health outcomes and lead to decreased educational attainment, increased poverty, and welfare use, as well as increased cost to taxpayers”(209). So, why hinder minors from this emergency contraception that can be beneficial to them? This emergency contraception can change a minor’s life around, meaning it can save them from being a teenage parent. Teenage pregnancy can lead minors to being overwhelmed and stressed over handling schoolwork, having a job, and taking care of their baby. This stressed isn’t healthy for the mother and simply it isn’t healthy for their unborn child, as Celia McMichael mentions, “…health risks of teen pregnancy such as hypertension in the mother, pre-term delivery, poor foetal growth and low birth weight and neonatal deaths” (663). By allowing minors to buy the morning-after pill it can help reduce stress that teenage pregnancy causes. Many believe that if the morning-after pill is being sold to minors, then they are being encouraged to have sexual intercourse. However, these numbers obtained from high school students say otherwise. “34.2 percent of students reported that they were currently sexually active (had intercourse during the three months preceding the survey): 20.9 percent of students were currently sexually active and used a condom during their last intercourse, while 13.3 percent of students were sexually active and did not use a condom during their last encounter” (HRSA). Although minors cannot buy the morning-after pill, they are still engaging sexual activities. This emergency contraception is a way to help educate minors about ways to prevent teenage pregnancy when they have unprotected sex or when there are any mishaps with their birth control method. This can be a way for parents to communicate with their children about being safe while having sexual intercourse, but once any mishaps happen there are options that can take in order to clear path of teenage pregnancy. Many believe that minors are not knowledgeable enough to use the morning after pill and that they are too young to use any emergency contraception. According to John F. Yannesa, “Adolescent pregnancy continues to be considered a major problem in the U.S. Teens in the U.S. are between two to ten times more likely to give birth compared to other developed and European nations”(209). …show more content…
Referring back to Duffy, “there were 309,060 pregnancies in the United States (U.S.) among teenagers between the ages of 15 to 19 years” (209). In order to reduce and help prevent teenage pregnancy, minors should be allowed to buy the morning-after pill. The sooner the morning-after pill is taken, the more effective it is. Therefore, if minors have to wait for an adult to buy it for them or for a prescription, it can put up their chances of being a teenage parent. Although, minors are not emotionally and physically ready to engage in sexual activities and are certainly not ready to be teenage parents. Therefore, for minors to buy the morning-after pill over the counter it can help solve the problem of teenage