EC prescribing authority bill killed

OB/GYN News, May 15, 2006 by Mary Ellen Schneider

A bill in Colorado that would have given limited power to licensed pharmacists to prescribe emergency contraception was recently vetoed by the state's governor. The legislation (H.B. 1212) would have extended prescribing authority to pharmacies only for emergency contraception and only until emergency contraception is available to the public without a prescription.

The prescribing authority would not have included the abortifacient mifepristone. The bill would have authorized pharmacists to prescribe emergency contraception, but would not have required it. Colorado Gov. Bill Owens vetoed the bill last month, saying that the legislation "strays radically from the accepted norms of medicine." He also objected to the fact that the bill would have allowed minors to obtain emergency contraception without the involvement of a physician or a parent.