Emergency contraception in relation to abortion
Emergency contraception pills are birth control pills, containing the same ingredients as birth control pills, but at a higher dosage. Like birth control pills, emergency contraception pills work by preventing ovulation -- the release of an egg.
After sex, pregnancy may occur if an egg is released and the sperm and egg meet. But the sperm are available inside the woman for days, so a woman who releases an egg one, two or three days after sex can become pregnant. If, however, she takes emergency contraception after sex but before releasing an egg, the emergency contraception will prevent the egg from being released and thus prevent pregnancy. Since pregnancy can result if emergency contraception is taken after an egg has been released, EC is not 100% effective, and it becomes less effective when there is a delay in administering it.
The emergency contraception pill should not be confused with mifepristone (also called Mifeprex, and formerly known as RU-486), an abortifacient which is taken after implantation has occurred, aborting the pregnancy. The morning-after pill must be taken before implantation, or it will have no effect.
Earlier, it was believed that emergency contraception worked by preventing fertilized eggs from implanting in the womb. Today, however, current medical science, as reflected in research papers published in respected medical journals, states that emergency contraception works by preventing ovulation. Recent medical studies in animals (the rat and the monkey) did not suggest that emergency contraception prevents implantation; however, this mechanism of action cannot be ruled out in all cases, as it is impossible to prove a negative.
Although the United States Food and Drug Administration, National Institutes of Health, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and other health agencies define pregnancy as beginning with implantation, some pro-life medical professionals, outdated embryology texts, and activists argue that preventing implantation is unethical, as the blastocyst (early-stage embryo) then dies instead of growing into a fetus and, ultimately, being carried to term. Therefore, women who believe it is immoral to prevent a fertilized egg from implanting may wish to avoid use of this drug.
"I feel very strongly that this shouldn’t be about abortion politics. This is a way to prevent unwanted pregnancy and thereby prevent abortion. This should be something we all agree on." – Dr. Susan F. Wood (former director of the FDA Office of Women's Health who resigned in protest after the FDA denied over-the-counter status to EC). “