In a surprise decision Monday, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced after years of delays to allow over-the-counter sales of the emergency contraceptive to women 18 and over.

    FDA told Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc. that it wanted to meet within seven days to discuss how to allow adults to freely buy the contraceptive - known as Plan B - while keeping it prescription-only for teens and girls.

    "If the conversations go smoothly and everyone works expeditiously through this, we think this is something that could be wrapped up in a matter of weeks, not months," said a Food and Drug Administration official to the media.

    The sudden shift came one day before acting FDA Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach is set to appear before a Senate committee to consider his nomination to become the agency's permanent chief.

    Two Senate Democrats said they still intended to block a vote on von Eschenbach's nomination unless the agency makes a final decision on whether to approve over-the-counter Plan B sales.

    "Today's announcement is nothing more than another delay tactic. The FDA continues to shirk its duty to serve as an independent agency dedicated to no other goal than the promotion of sound science and the well-being of the American people," Sens. Patty Murray of Washington and Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York said in a statement.

    Plan B has been available through a prescription since 1999. An agency advisory panel backed sale of the drug without a prescription in 2003. 

    However in August 2005, the FDA delayed a decision, sparking an outcry that the agency had let opposition from political conservatives overrule science.

    Some conservatives say easy access to Plan B could lead to greater promiscuity, particularly among teenagers. 

    The morning-after pill is a high dose of the most common ingredient in regular birth control pills. When taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex, the two-pill series can lower the risk of pregnancy by up to 89 percent.

    The pills, which do not work if a woman is already pregnant, prevent ovulation or fertilization of an egg. They also may prevent the egg from implanting into the uterus, considered the medical definition of pregnancy, although recent research suggests that's not likely.  Enditem

(Agencies)