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Shippensburg University

February 8, 2012 by · Comments Off on Shippensburg University 

Shippensburg University, Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania doesn’t have the same old vending machines that most schools do. They don’t carry chocolate bars, bags of chips or soda. A vending machine at Shippensburg University has been providing students with the Plan B, “morning-after pill,” for the past two years. The $25 emergency contraceptive pill isn’t the only product that students can buy from these machines. Condoms, decongestants and pregnancy tests can also be found in the vending machine on the Pennsylvania campus.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are currently investigating the University for dispensing the Plan B morning-after pill.

What is Plan B? The Plan B One-Step website states that their pill is a “backup plan that helps prevent pregnancy after birth control failure.” Within 72 hours, or 3 days, the Plan B One Step pill will reduce the chance of pregnancy after unprotected sex. While the Plan B emergency contraceptive pill is available without a prescription, legally it must be kept behind the counter.

In order to get the pill over the counter, the consumer must be 17-years old or older. So how is this age limit being enforced with the vending machines? According to the Denver Post, Shippensburg University officials said that “access to the vending machine in the student center is restricted.” Restricted in this case, means that only students and University employees have access to the machine. A spokesperson for the University also said that according to their records, all current students are 17 or older.

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