Statement from Dr. Ed Weisbart regarding Todd Akin’s Extreme Views on Birth Control

In response to Todd Akin’s call for a total ban on emergency contraception:

According to Ed Weisbart MD, family physician in St. Louis MO, “Emergency contraception, also called the morning-after pill, is a higher dosage of the same hormones found in ordinary birth control pills. It is highly effective in reducing a woman's chance of pregnancy after a contraceptive failure or unprotected sex – including rape,” said Dr. Weisbart.

“Emergency contraception prevents pregnancy and should not be confused with medical abortion. Emergency contraception and the abortion pill RU-486 are not the same thing. EC works before a pregnancy is established, not afterward. If a woman is already pregnant, EC will not work, nor will it terminate her pregnancy.”

“The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, ACOG, has launched several campaigns aimed at increasing access to and knowledge about emergency contraception. It’s unconscionable for a politician like Todd Akin to use his bully pulpit to mislead women and interfere with their health care decisions,” said Dr. Weisbart.