IN A reversal of Bush-era policy, a US federal judge has ordered that the morning-after pill, Plan B, be made available to 17-year-old girls without a prescription.

Plan B must be taken within 72 hours of sex – the earlier, the better – but getting a prescription takes time. So in 2003 scientific advisers to the US Food and Drug Administration recommended making Plan B prescription-free. The FDA finally did this in 2006, but only for those over 18 years old. In the interim, the Center for Reproductive Rights in Washington DC sued the FDA for not following the scientific advice.

On …