No company has done so, according to FDA officials. In addition to possible litigation, another potential roadblock for manufacturers is the abortion debate. Most medical experts state that pregnancy begins when a fertilized egg implants on the uterine wall. Postcoital emergency contraception prevents the fertilized egg from implanting, thus preventing pregnancy, according to reproductive health specialists. Abortion opponents, however, argue that life begins when the egg and sperm unite.
Emergency contraception is chemical abortion.
The FDA has not decided on its next move. The agency may continue to encourage manufacturers to apply for a labeling change. It may publish detailed dosage and scientific information in the Federal Register. But the agency will stop short of ordering manufacturers to label their products for this use, FDA officials said. In a separate survey of 300 obstetrician-gynecologists done in 1995, the Kaiser Foundation found that 7 of 10 physicians said they had prescribed emergency contraceptive pills in the previous year, but most had done so infrequently.