Sens. Cory Gardner and Kelly Ayotte Push Bill For
Over-the-Counter Birth Control
by Dr. Susan Berry24
May 2015
Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) 25% and Sen. Kelly
Ayotte (R-NH) 42% are pushing joint legislation that would
incentivize drug companies that manufacture “routine-use contraceptives” to
apply to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for
a switch to over-the-counter (OTC) sales.
According to a
press release last
week, the “Allowing Greater Access to Safe and Effective Contraception Act”
would encourage contraceptive drug manufacturers to file for a
“prescription-to-over-the-counter switch by allowing for priority review of the
application and waiving the FDA filing fee.”
The measure provides for incentives to drug companies for
any contraceptive available to adults aged 18 and above, which is
deemed “safe and effective for routine OTC use” by the FDA.
The bill would also repeal Obamacare’s restrictions on
consumer use of health, medical and flexible savings accounts for the purchase
of OTC drugs, thus further enabling the purchase of OTC contraceptives with
these types of savings accounts. Additionally, the legislation would repeal
Obamacare’s annual limits on flexible savings account contributions.
“It’s time to allow women the ability to make their own
decisions about safe, effective, and long-established methods of
contraception,” Gardner said.
“Most other drugs with such a long history of safe and
routine use are available for purchase over the counter, and contraception
should join them,” he added. “Making this medication available over the counter
would increase access in rural and underserved areas, save consumers money by
increasing competition and availability, and save women time by increasing the
ease of getting the safe contraception they need.”
“Our legislation will help increase women’s access to safe
and effective contraceptives and further empower women to make their own health
care decisions,” adds Ayotte. “In addition, our bill restores the ability of
Health Savings Accounts and Flexible Spending Accounts to be used to purchase
over-the-counter medications, giving women more purchasing power.”
Sens. Sen. Dean Heller (R-NV) 54%, Sen. Joni
Ernst (R-IA) 75%, Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC)
51%,
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) 69%, and Sen. Thom Tillis
(R-NC) 50% are co-sponsoring the legislation.
During their campaigns for the U.S. Senate last year,
Gardner and Tillis
provoked the ire of abortion
heavyweights NARAL,
Planned Parenthood, and Emily’s List by
turning the tables on Democrats who are eager to cast Republican candidates as
members of the “war on women” brigade who would repeal Obamacare and take away
“free” birth control for women.
Gardner and Tillis responded by advocating for OTC birth
control – available without a prescription and, consequently, without Obamacare
providing it. The two candidates presented the economic argument that birth
control pills could be even more accessible – and less expensive – if women
could purchase them without having to obtain a doctor’s prescription.
Obamacare’s requirement of full coverage of birth control in health insurance
plans requires a prescription and, as a result, would keep the cost of the
contraceptives rising for taxpayers who foot the bill for the “free” birth control.
Since pro-abortion groups are reaping many benefits from
Obamacare’s so-called “free” contraceptives, the argument presented by Gardner
and Tillis sent them into a tailspin, and when the two Republicans won their
Senate races, the wounded organizations said they would hold them accountable
to their stance of making birth control available over the counter.
While the economic argument of lowering costs of
contraceptives by having them available over-the-counter may carry weight, the
choice of which oral contraceptives are “safe and effective for routine OTC
use” is an issue that may need to be addressed.
“The
World Health Organization
declared forms of birth control pills…as Group I carcinogens–and it makes
biological sense,” she added.
Additionally, a recent
study published by
the journal
Human Brain Mapping,
found the use of the combination form of birth control pills to be associated
with significantly lower cortical thickness in certain brain structures
believed to be important in the response to emotional stimuli.
The authors of the study noted that, according to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, oral contraceptives “are used by the
majority of women in the United States for at least one period of time during
their reproductive years and are approved by the Food and Drug Administration
for pediatric use” after the onset of the first menstrual period.
“Some women experience negative emotional side effects from
taking oral contraceptive pills, although the scientific findings investigating
that have been mixed,” the study’s co-author, Nicole Petersen, a neuroscientist
at UCLA, recently told
The Huffington Post.
“So it’s possible that this change in the lateral orbitofrontal cortex may be
related to the emotional changes that some women experience when using birth
control pills.”
Perhaps the reaction of study co-author Larry Cahill of the
University of California-Irvine was most revealing, when he told
Catholic News Agency
he was amazed at the lack of research on birth control pills, considering they
have been taken by many women for half a century to prevent pregnancy.
“You might think after 50 years and hundreds of millions of
women taking various incarnations of the pill, there would be a large and
cohesive and impressive body of evidence on it, but there’s next to nothing,”
he said. “I honestly find that amazing.”
How Evil Is Your
Birth Control Manufacturer?
Yaz and Yasmin manufacturer Bayer is under fire yet
again, this time
for withholding key data about blood clot risks from the FDA. We decided to see
how Bayer stacked up against other manufacturers where evil is concerned.
In the land of Yaz commercials, everyone has a sassy doctor
friend who enjoys casually discussing…
Read
more
According to
Bloomberg, recently unsealed FDA documents show
that Bayer neglected to pass along reports of blood clots to the agency in a
2004 safety review of Yasmin. Says former FDA commissioner David Kessler,
"Bayer presented a selective view of the data, and that presentation
obscured the potential risks associated with Yasmin." The Bloomberg
coverage includes a lot of phrases you never want in an article about your
company, like "The FDA told Bayer in June 2003 that it was 'very
concerned' about the number of adverse events, particularly deaths," and a
section titled "10,000 Lawsuits." So ...
Bayer
What it makes: Yasmin, Yaz, Mirena (IUD)
Evil activities: hiding information about Yaz and
Yasmin risks; advertising pills for non-approved uses (like curing acne);
failing inspections for some ingredients
Wyeth (now owned by Pfizer)
What it makes: Alesse, LoOvral, Lybrel, Ovral,
Minesse, Harmonet, Triminulet, Trinordiol, Minulet, Microval, Nordiol,
Biphasil, Overette, Nordette, Triphasil
Evil activities: allegedly illegally kept a
generic
version of the antidepressant Effexor off the market; accused of
paying
bribes for overseas business; allegedly sponsored unethical
drug
trials on victims of the 1984 Bhopal gas disaster
Ortho-McNeil-Janssen (part of Johnson
& Johnson)
What it makes: Ortho-Cept, Ortho-Cyclen, Ortho
Micronor, Ortho-Novum, Ortho-Tri-Cyclen, Ortho-Evra, Ortho-Tri-Cyclen Lo
Evil activities: accused of
hiding
risks of Ortho-Evra patch, including a potentially higher risk of
blood
clots than that posed by birth control pills; allegedly paid
kickbacks to
pharmacy Omnicare to get more nursing home residents on its drugs
Merck
What it makes: Implanon, Nexplanon, NuvaRing
Evil activities: allegedly made
false
statements about Vioxx's safety and marketed it for an unapproved
use (for which it will pay a nearly $1 billion settlement); refuses to
lower
prices it charges government programs for its life-saving AIDS drugs
Warner Chilcott
What it makes: Ovcon, Estrostep, Loestrin, Lo
Loestrin
Evil activities: Warner Chilcott was
sued
in connection with its IPO in 2006, but in general I was not able to find much
evidence of evil. However, Urban Dictionary does
define
"Warner Chilcott" as "To commit an act of unspeakable evil and
uncalled for malice, just because you can" — so maybe there's something
I'm missing.
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC)
CDC Foundation
is a foundation for the
Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Note:
Colleen A.
Goggins was a board member for the
CDC
Foundation, and the worldwide chairman, consumer group for
Johnson & Johnson.
David
Satcher was a director at
Johnson
& Johnson, the surgeon general for the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is a board member
for the
CDC Foundation.
Michael R.
Bloomberg is the founder of the
Bloomberg
Family Foundation, the founder of
Bloomberg
LP,
Howard Wolfson is his
adviser, and was a benefactor at the
Harlem
Children's Zone.
Anne
M. Tatlock is a director at the
Bloomberg
Family Foundation, and was a director at
Merck.
Howard
Wolfson is
Michael R. Bloomberg’s
adviser, and was a partner at the
Glover
Park Group.
Glover Park
Group is the lobby firm for
Bloomberg
IL, the
Planned Parenthood
Federation of America, was the
Pfizer
Inc., and
Pharmaceutical Research
and Manufacturers of America.
Open
Society Foundations was a funder for the
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
(think tank).
George
Soros is the founder & chairman for the
Open Society Foundations, was a benefactor at the
Harlem Children's Zone, a contributor
for
MoveOn.org, and the chairman for
the
Foundation to Promote Open Society.
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the
Harlem Children's Zone,
Media
Matters, the
Brookings Institution (think tank), the
Committee for Economic Development, and
the
Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace (think tank).
Ilyse
Hogue was a director of political advocacy for
MoveOn.org, is a senior adviser for
Media Matters, and the president of
NARAL Pro-Choice America.
Akin,
Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP was the lobby firm for the
Glover Park Group,
Johnson & Johnson,
Merck,
is the lobby firm for
Pfizer Inc.,
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers
of America, and
Wyeth.
Wyeth
was a member of the
Pharmaceutical
Research and Manufacturers of America.
Vernon E. Jordan
Jr. is a senior counsel for
Akin,
Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP, married to
Ann Dibble Jordan,
an
honorary trustee at the
Brookings Institution (think tank), Valerie B. Jarrett’s great uncle, a
director at the American Friends of
Bilderberg (think tank), and a 2008
Bilderberg
conference participant (think tank).
Ann
Dibble Jordan is married to
Vernon
E. Jordan Jr., an honorary trustee at the
Brookings Institution (think
tank), and was a director at Johnson
& Johnson.
Valerie B. Jarrett
is
Vernon E. Jordan Jr’s great niece, the senior
adviser for the
Barack Obama
administration, and a member of the
Commercial
Club of Chicago.
R.
Eden Martin is the president of the
Commercial
Club of Chicago, and counsel at
Sidley
Austin LLP.
Newton
N. Minow is a member of the
Commercial
Club of Chicago, and a senior counsel at
Sidley Austin LLP.
Sidley Austin
LLP was the lobby firm for
Johnson
& Johnson,
Pfizer Inc., is
the lobby firm for the
Pharmaceutical
Research and Manufacturers of America, and
Bayer HealthCare.
Sandra E. Peterson
is the group worldwide chairman for
Johnson
& Johnson, and was the EVP for
Bayer
HealthCare.
Bayer HealthCare
is a member of the
Pharmaceutical
Research and Manufacturers of America, and a subsidiary of
Bayer AG.
Barack
Obama was an intern at
Sidley Austin
LLP, and
Obamacare is his signature
policy initiative.
CGI Group Inc.
was the
Obamacare contractor that
developed
Healthcare.gov web site.
Donna
S. Morea was the EVP for the
CGI
Group Inc., and a trustee at the
Committee
for Economic Development.
Lloyd Howell Jr.
is the EVP for
Booz Allen Hamilton,
and a trustee at the
Committee for
Economic Development.
Raymond V.
Gilmartin is a trustee at the
Committee
for Economic Development, and was the president & CEO for
Merck.
Patricia F. Russo
is a trustee at the
Committee for
Economic Development, a director at
Merck,
and a director at
Alcoa Inc.
Joseph
T. Gorman was a trustee at the
Committee
for Economic Development, and a director at
Alcoa Inc.
Michael G. Morris
was a trustee at the
Committee for
Economic Development, and is a director at
Alcoa Inc.
Stephen W. Sanger
is a trustee at the
Committee for
Economic Development, and a director at
Pfizer Inc.
Frederick W.
Telling was a VP for
Pfizer Inc.,
and is a trustee at the
Committee for
Economic Development.
Robert
A. Essner was a trustee at the
Committee
for Economic Development, and the chairman for
Wyeth.
Ronald A. Williams
is a trustee at the
Committee for
Economic Development, a director at
Johnson
& Johnson, and a director at the
Boeing
Company.
Kenneth M.
Duberstein was the VP for the
Committee
for Economic Development, is a director at the
Boeing Company, and a trustee at the
Brookings Institution (think tank).
Donna
S. Morea was a trustee at the
Committee
for Economic Development, and the EVP for the
CGI Group Inc.
Barbara G. Fast
was a VP for the
CGI Group Inc., and
a VP at the
Boeing Company.
W. James
McNerney Jr. is the chairman & president & CEO
for the
Boeing Company,
and a member of the
Commercial Club of
Chicago.
Cyrus F.
Freidheim Jr. is a member of the
Commercial
Club of Chicago, and an honorary trustee at the
Brookings Institution (think tank).
Klaus Kleinfeld
is a trustee at the
Brookings
Institution (think tank), the chairman & CEO for
Alcoa Inc., a director at
Bayer
AG, and a 2008
Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
Mayer
Brown was the lobby firm for the
Bayer
Corporation, and
Pfizer Inc.
William M. Daley was a partner at Mayer Brown, the chief of staff for the Barack Obama administration, and is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
William M. Daley
Professional career
Daley returned to the practice of law, as a partner with the firm
Mayer
Brown (then Mayer, Brown & Platt) from 1993 to 1997.
Commercial Club of
Chicago, Members Directory A-Z (Past Research)
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Robert
A. Helman is a member of the
Commercial
Club of Chicago, a partner at
Mayer
Brown, and was an honorary trustee at the
Brookings Institution (think tank).
Charles O.
Prince III was a trustee at the
Brookings
Institution (think tank), and is a director at the
Johnson & Johnson.
Mark B. McClellan
is a director at
Johnson & Johnson,
was a senior fellow at the
Brookings
Institution (think tank), an administrator of Medicare and Medicaid for the
U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS), and a commissioner for the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Constance J.
Horner was a guest scholar at the
Brookings
Institution (think tank), the deputy secretary for the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is a
director
Pfizer Inc.
Suzanne Nora Johnson
is a trustee at the
Brookings
Institution (think tank), a director at
Pfizer Inc., and a trustee at the
Carnegie Institution for Science.
Andrew Carnegie
was the founder of the
Carnegie
Institution for Science, the
Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank), and the founder of the
Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Jessica Tuchman Mathews was an honorary
trustee at the
Brookings Institution (think tank), the president of the
Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank), is a director at the
Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank),
a director at the American Friends of
Bilderberg (think tank), and a
2008
Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
Ed Griffin’s interview with
Norman Dodd in 1982
(The investigation into the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace uncovered the plans for population
control by involving the United
States in war)
Donald
Kennedy was a trustee at the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
(think tank), and a commissioner for the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Margaret A.
Hamburg is the commissioner for the
U.S.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the VP for the
Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank),
David A. Hamburg’s daughter, and was an assistant secretary for the
U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS).
David A. Hamburg
is
Margaret A. Hamburg’s father, an
adviser for the
Nuclear Threat
Initiative (think tank), and the president emeritus for the
Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Carnegie
Corporation of New York was a funder for the
Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace (think tank), the
Nuclear
Threat Initiative (think tank), and the
Brookings Institution (think
tank).
Newton
N. Minow is an honorary trustee at the
Carnegie
Corporation of New York, a senior counsel for
Sidley Austin LLP, and a member of the
Commercial Club of Chicago.
Michelle
Obama was a lawyer at
Sidley Austin
LLP, and
Craig M. Robinson’s sister.
Sidley Austin
LLP was the lobby firm for
Johnson
& Johnson,
Pfizer Inc., is
the lobby firm for the
Pharmaceutical
Research and Manufacturers of America, and
Bayer HealthCare.
R.
Eden Martin is counsel at
Sidley
Austin LLP, and the president of the
Commercial
Club of Chicago.
Penny S. Pritzker
is a member of the
Commercial Club of
Chicago, the secretary at the
U.S.
Department of Commerce for
the
Barack Obama administration, was
the national finance chair, fundraiser
for the
2008 Barack Obama presidential
campaign, a co-chair for the
2009
Barack Obama inaugural committee, a fundraiser, national co-chair for the
2012 Barack Obama presidential campaign,
a contributor for the
2013 Barack Obama
inaugural committee, the host for the
Barack
Obama fund-raising dinner, 7/2/2008, and
Craig M. Robinson’s basketball coach for the children's team.
Sally
Susman was a deputy assistant secretary at the
U.S. Department of Commerce, and is the EVP for
Pfizer Inc.,
Samuel W. Bodman
III was the deputy secretary for the
U.S.
Department of Commerce, and is a trustee emeritus at the
Carnegie Institution for Science.
Suzanne Nora
Johnson is a trustee at the
Carnegie
Institution for Science, a director at
Pfizer
Inc., and a trustee at the
Brookings
Institution (think tank).
Peter G. Peterson
was the secretary for the
U.S.
Department of Commerce, and the chairman for the
Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).
Donald
Kennedy was a trustee at the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
(think tank), and a commissioner for the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Margaret A.
Hamburg is the VP for the
Nuclear
Threat Initiative (think tank), the commissioner for the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA),
David A. Hamburg’s daughter, and was
an assistant secretary for the
U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
David A. Hamburg
is
Margaret A. Hamburg’s father, an
adviser for the
Nuclear Threat
Initiative (think tank), and the president emeritus for the
Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Carnegie
Corporation of New York was a funder for the
Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace (think tank), the
Nuclear
Threat Initiative (think tank), and the
Brookings Institution (think
tank).
Ted
Turner is a co-chairman for the
Nuclear
Threat Initiative (think tank), and a member of
Kappa Sigma.
