WASHINGTON (May 2, 2001) -- An official for the Catholic Bishops' Conference today responded to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' (ACOG) call to promote advance prescriptions of the so-called "morning after" pill. Dr. Thomas Purdon, the new head of ACOG, issued the call on Monday at ACOG's annual meeting. Dr. Purdon and ACOG claim that the pill is "emergency contraception" which will reduce abortions.

"American women are being misled: this drug will act as an abortifacient, after fertilization has already occurred," said Cathleen Cleaver, Esq. "One of the intended actions of this drug is to prevent a fertilized egg from implanting, which destroys the young embryo. ACOG refuses to discuss this serious consequence of the 'morning-after' pill.

"Promoting the 'morning-after' pill as a panacea is highly unethical for many reasons. But chief among them is that it may lead a woman to unknowingly abort an already developing embryo. To tell women that they are contracepting when they are actually, in many circumstances, aborting borders on exploitation. We should expect much more from our doctors than misleading women about a prescription that can destroy life."

More information about "emergency contraception" and the "morning-after" pill is available at www.nccbuscc.org/prolife/issues/abortion/fact1098.htm. Ms. Cleaver is available for comment.

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