ECP issue causes stir

Students petition BOV decision

Amy Paterson / senior photographer Junior Kathleen Schoeiwer signs the SGA's petition against the Board of Visitors' decision to stop the distribution of the emergency contraceptive pill at the University Health Center.

With a 7-6 vote last Friday, the JMU Board of Visitors discontinued the sale of the emergency contraceptive pill at JMU, creating a commotion on campus. The University Health Center is allowed still to prescribe ECPs.

Upon hearing about the decision, some students became angry. "The student voices weren't heard," said sophomore Krissy Schnebel, who was present at the meeting. "ECP is a service for students, and I don't think it should have been taken away — especially without any student input."

Schnebel, who is an at-large senator, began a petition stating that the Health Center should be allowed to distribute ECPs on campus. Schnebel said she needed at least 10 percent of the student body's support on this issue in order for it to become a Bill of Opinion in front of the Student Government Association.

By Tuesday's SGA meeting, Schnebel had collected a total of 2,714 signatures, which allowed this issue to be debated in front of the Senate. Normally Bills of Opinion must wait a week before they are debated; however, the Senate waived this rule due to the immediacy this Bill of Opinion required.

"Students felt cheated and want (ECPs) back. As a student leader this is my job," Schnebel said during the debate.

Schnebel said her petition received much support but there were a few students that called her a "murderer" and a "whore."

According to board member Mark Obenshain, who brought the motion to the board, the Health Center should not distribute ECPs, also known as Plan B, because JMU is a public university. He said that the Health Center's practice of distributing ECP is something the university "should not be engaged in."

According to the Food and Drug Administration Web site, www.fda.gov, ECPs work in various ways. This pill can either "delay or prevent ovulation … make it difficult for sperm to fertilize an egg … [or] produce changes in the lining of the womb."

The pill must be taken within 72 hours of the sexual act in order for it to be effective, according to the Web site.

EC is not an abortion pill, according to the Web site, which stated, "If you are already pregnant, emergency contraceptive pills cannot end the pregnancy. Instead, the pill prevents a pregnancy from beginning."

According to Ann Simmons, coordinator of health services, JMU began selling the pill in 1995 after the approval from former President Ronald Carrier. She said that ECPs was sold for $15, and 2,107 students have bought the pill since 1995.

According to Ann Simmons, coordinator of health services, JMU began selling the pill in 1995 after the approval from former President Ronald Carrier. She said that ECPs were sold for $15, and 2,107 students have bought the pill since 1995.

According to President Linwood Rose, the university does not fund the pill. "Students paid for the drug, which is approved by the FDA, so no cost was incurred to the taxpayer or other JMU students," he said.

Students said they feel they were not represented at the meeting. However, Rose said, "I believe the board members are very interested in student opinion on all issues."

Schnebel said that the issue is being made into a political one, which is wrong. "It's not about political affiliation or abortion. It's about a service," she said.

After debating, the Bill of Opinion needed two-thirds of the Senate's support. With 55 people in favor, six who did not support it and two who abstained, the support for the Bill of Opinion passed in the Senate.

Today the bill is being examined by the four members of the Executive Committee. If this bill is met with a majority then it receives an SGA stamp. This bill then may be presented at the next board meeting in June, according to Schnebel.

This summer, there will be new appointments to the board as the terms of old members retire. If the current board does not change its decision then it is possible that the SGA will present its Bill of Opinion again with the new board, Schnebel said.

However, if the bill does not pass in the Executive Council then it is vetoed, and it does not receive the stamp. The bill goes back to the Senate where if it receives a two-thirds majority it will override the Executive Council and receive the SGA stamp, according to sophomore Lauren Broussard, Blueridge Hall senator.

The issue over the pill began when Virginia Delegate Republican Robert Marshall wrote to Rose and the Board of Visitors March 19 saying that ECPs should not be distributed.

Marshall wrote, "There is no statute that requires JMU or other state universities to make EC[Ps] available to students."

He wrote that he was "disturbed by the misinformation provided by JMU's health clinic," and that students were not receiving the proper information about ECPs. He also wrote that ECPs are an abortion drug, and that "the acceptance of drugs that can cause early abortion of unwitting JMU coeds is most troubling."

When asked to clarify why JMU should not dispense the pill he said, "I don't think it's the university's business to make this pill available to coeds … it is early abortion."

According to Marshall, having the pill available to students makes as much sense as the Health Center offering body piercing.

Marshall said he he wrote to both the University of Virginia and Virginia Commonwealth University concerning this issue. He also e-mailed the College of William & Mary and plans to look at other schools and the issue of this pill through their Web sites. There are currently nine public Virginia colleges that distribute this pill, according to the Health Center.

The issue was further pressed when Walter Curt, president of Shenandoah Electronic Intelligence Inc., mailed letters addressed to pro-life Harrisonburg residents. Obenshain is running for Virginia Senate this November, and Curt wrote that people should call Obenshain's campaign office asking, "Why he has done nothing about [the ECPs] policy?"

In the letter, Curt, who is also a Harrisonburg resident, said, "JMU is publicly promoting abortion with our tax dollars … if Mark wants to campaign as a ‘pro-life leader' in the Commonwealth, then he owes pro-life voters an explanation for neglecting his own backyard."

Obenshain said that while he does think that ECPs should not be distributed in the Health Center, he has no intention of eliminating other contraception, like condoms and birth control pills. He said that he took no action against the prescription of ECPs.

Simmons said, in defense of allegations that the Health Center is not providing enough information to students, that prior to the distribution of the pill the student is presented with options and information.
She said that this issue should not be used to further one's political agenda and gain votes. "Women's rights should never be a political issue," she added.

She also said that students pay for the pill themselves and that tax dollars are not covering any of the costs.

According to the Health Center Web site, www.jmu.edu/healthctr, ECPs still can be prescribed, and they can be picked up at Rite Aid, CVS and Eckerd, among other pharmacies.

Simmons said that she feels this is not adequate because ECPs must be taken within 72 hours. She said that not all students have access to transportation to these places, and that some students are embarrassed to buy this drug. "Lots of students won't even go in a drug store to buy condoms," Simmons said.

However, at the SGA meeting senior Kevin Winters, a senator, said that it is only a nine-minute walk to Rite Aid from the Quad, and that transportation should not be an issue.

Both students and administrators are debating this issue.

Mark Warner, senior vice president of student affairs, said he is "disappointed that we will no longer be able to dispense the medication on campus. However, I am pleased that we will be able to continue to prescribe the pill through the Health Center."

He said he believes "that this is a valuable health service for our students."

Simmons said, "There are a lot of different situations, and people have the right to their opinion. I think we need to be open-minded."

Meanwhile, there is a national debate over ECPs. According to an April 22 article in The Washington Times, in order for women to get the pill within the necessary 72 hours, a pharmaceutical company is asking the "Food and Drug Administration to permit the over-the-counter sale of its emergency contraceptive pill."