Catholic Medical Association Does Not Recommend Plan B®
Bala Cynwyd, PA – November 29, 2016 – The Catholic Medical Association (CMA) does not recognize Plan B (“Morning-After Pill” or “Emergency Contraception”) as safe and effective health care. Recent studies of the drug LNG-EC (Plan B) suggest that its mode of action (MOA) is not only the suppression of ovulation, but also a post- fertilization effect which may prevent the survival of an early embryo.
In fact, recent studies suggest that less than 1 in 5 patients demonstrate a suppression of ovulation by Plan B and only when it is given early in the fertile window. Given increased scientific information suggesting the post fertilization effect of Plan B, the CMA issued a position paper in Sept. 2015 urging healthcare facilities to discontinue using Plan B. The CMA strongly encourages a more thorough and accurate approach, thereby avoiding the falsehood that the drug does not induce abortion. The entailed risk of taking a human life through Plan B’s MOA is ethically unacceptable. This is because we are obliged to choose the morally safer course of action, which in this case can only be realized by not having recourse to the use of Plan B. The CMA supports disseminating more complete and accurate information to guide all involved to a scientifically sound and moral choice.
Therefore, the CMA endorses the position of not recommending Plan B in in any circumstance. The CMA continues to encourage ongoing research in this critical area of reproductive medicine and is receptive to new medications and interventions that do not risk the loss of human life.
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The Catholic Medical Association (CMA) is the largest non-profit association of Catholic individuals in health care, representing over 2,000 physicians and healthcare providers, and over 75 medical specialties. The CMA helps members grow in faith, maintain ethical integrity, and provide excellent health care in accordance with the teachings of the Church. As a leading national voice, the CMA creates and organizes educational resources and events; advocates for members, the Church, and the medical profession in public forums; and provides guidance for bishops and other national leaders on healthcare ethics and policy, and publishes a quarterly bioethics journal, The Linacre Quarterly. CMA builds communities of support through over 100 local guilds and is dedicated to educating and supporting the next generation.