A federal judge continued his criticism of the Obama administration's attempts to delay making the morning-after pill available to all women
Judge Edward R. Korman has grown frustrated with the Obama administration, specifically Kathleen Sebelius, the secretary of health and human services, who have tried to slow down the process that would make the morning-after pill available to young women. The government is arguing for a stay of his decision.
“If a stay is granted, it will allow the bad-faith, politically motivated decision of Secretary Sebelius, who lacks any medical or scientific expertise, to prevail — thus justifiably undermining the public’s confidence in the drug approval process,” Judge Korman wrote.
Basically, the administration would, for political reasons, like to put an age limit on when women can purchase the morning-after pill. Scared of what religious groups would think of a United States where women can choose what do with their bodies, the Obama administration is lobbying against the findings of both the judge and the FDA, who have found the drug to be perfectly safe for women of any age.
In 2011, Sibelius overruled the decision of the FDA in finding that anyone could use the morning-after pill, and instead limited it to just women 17 and over. Last week, the FDA ruled that women 15 years and older should be able to purchase the pill without a prescription.
The judge also dismissed the government's argument that women might be becoming confused about the availability of the pill, and that it's best to just wait until the courts and the FDA and the Obama administration finally come to an agreement.
Judge Korman called that argument “largely an insult to the intelligence of women.”